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WthchefsWAREHOUSE The Chefs ' Warehouse Reports Third Quarter 2021 Financial Results October 27 , 2021 RIDGEFIELD , Conn . , Oct. 27 , 2021 ( GLOBE NEWSWIRE ) -- The Chefs ' Warehouse , Inc. ( NASDAQ : CHEF ) ( the " Company " or " Chefs " ) , a premier distributor of specialty food products in the United States and Canada , today reported financial results for its third quarter ended September 24 , 2021 . Financial highlights for the third quarter of 2021 : • Net sales increased 90.7 % to $ 484.3 million for the third quarter of 2021 from $ 254.0 million for the third quarter of 2020 . • GAAP net income was $ 3.5 million , or $ 0.09 per diluted share , for the third quarter of 2021 compared to net loss of $ 11.4 million , or $ ( 0.31 ) per diluted share , in the third quarter of 2020 . Adjusted EPS¹ was $ 0.12 for the third quarter of 2021 compared to $ ( 0.38 ) for the third quarter of 2020 . Adjusted EBITDA¹ was $ 23.4 million for the third quarter of 2021 compared to negative adjusted EBITDA $ ( 4.9 ) million for the third quarter of 2020 . ● ● " Revenue trends remained strong as momentum from second quarter customer and consumer demand continued into the third quarter , " said Chris Pappas , Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company . " Moderate growth in market segments and business activity related to return to offices , travel and hospitality contributed to a steady increase in weekly sales as the quarter progressed . We exited the quarter at approximately 103 % of 2019 sales , inclusive of acquisitions completed in 2020 and 2021. " Third Quarter Fiscal 2021 Results Net sales for the quarter ended September 24 , 2021 increased 90.7 % to $ 484.3 million from $ 254.0 million for the quarter ended September 25 , 2020 . Organic sales increased $ 213.7 million , or 84.2 % versus the prior year quarter . Sales growth of $ 16.6 million , or 6.5 % , resulted from acquisitions . Organic case count increased approximately 57.5 % in the Company's specialty category with unique customers and placements increases at 36.9 % and 50.4 % , respectively , compared to the prior year quarter . Organic pounds sold in the Company's center - of - the - plate category increased approximately 56.9 % compared to the prior year quarter . Estimated inflation was 10.9 % in the Company's specialty categories and 28.0 % in the center - of - the - plate categories compared to the prior year quarter . Gross profit increased approximately 82.2 % to $ 110.0 million for the third quarter of 2021 from $ 60.4 million for the third quarter of 2020. Gross profit margin decreased approximately 105 basis points to 22.7 % from 23.8 % . Gross margins in the Company's specialty category increased 301 basis points and gross margins decreased 488 basis points in the Company's center - of - the - plate category compared to the prior year quarter . Selling , general and administrative expenses increased by approximately 30.1 % to $ 99.4 million for the third quarter of 2021 from $ 76.4 million for the third quarter of 2020. These increases were primarily volume - based increases to support our sales growth for the quarter ended September 24 , 2021 . As a percentage of net sales , operating expenses were 20.5 % in the third quarter of 2021 compared to 30.1 % in the third quarter of 2020 . Other operating expense increased by approximately $ 4.3 million primarily due to changes in the fair value of our contingent earn - out liabilities which caused a non - cash charge of $ 0.1 million in the current period compared to non - cash credits of $ 4.6 million in the prior year period . Operating income for the third quarter of 2021 was $ 10.4 million compared to operating loss of $ 11.9 million for the third quarter of 2020. The increase in operating income was driven primarily by higher gross profit , partially offset by higher selling , general and administrative , as discussed above . As a percentage of net sales , operating income was 2.2 % in the third quarter of 2021 as compared to operating loss of 4.7 % in the third quarter of 2020 . Total interest expense decreased to $ 4.2 million for the third quarter of 2021 compared to $ 4.7 million for the third quarter of 2020. The decrease in interest expense is the result of lower effective interest rates charged on the Company's outstanding debt . Net income for the third quarter of 2021 was $ 3.5 million , or $ 0.09 per diluted share , compared to net loss of $ 11.4 million , or $ ( 0.31 ) per diluted share , for the third quarter of 2020 . Adjusted EBITDA¹ was $ 23.4 million for the third quarter of 2021 compared to negative adjusted EBITDA of $ ( 4.9 ) million for the third quarter of 2020 . For the third quarter of 2021 , adjusted net income¹ was $ 4.5 million , or $ 0.12 per diluted share compared to adjusted net loss of $ 13.7 million , or $ ( 0.38 ) per diluted share for the third quarter of 2020 . Full Year 2021 Guidance Due to the continued uncertainty regarding the pace of broader economic recovery and the timing of event and travel related business activity , the Company will not be providing guidance for 2021 at this time . The Company will look to provide guidance as it gains more clarity as to the pace of recovery , outlook and the broader post - pandemic related environment . Third Quarter 2021 Earnings Conference Call The Company will host a conference call to discuss third quarter 2021 financial results today at 8:30 a.m. EDT . Hosting the call will be Chris Pappas , chairman and chief executive officer , and Jim Leddy , chief financial officer . The conference call will be webcast live from the Company's investor relations website at http://investors.chefswarehouse.com/ . An online archive of the webcast will be available on the Company's investor relations website . Forward - Looking Statements