Food distribution giant US Foods (NYSE: USFD) missed Wall Street’s revenue expectations in Q4 CY2025 as sales rose 3.3% year on year to $9.8 billion. Its non-GAAP profit of $1.04 per share was 3.4% above analysts’ consensus estimates.
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US Foods (USFD) Q4 CY2025 Highlights:
- Revenue: $9.8 billion vs analyst estimates of $9.90 billion (3.3% year-on-year growth, 1% miss)
- Adjusted EPS: $1.04 vs analyst estimates of $1.01 (3.4% beat)
- Operating Margin: 3.3%, in line with the same quarter last year
- Sales Volumes were flat year on year (3.5% in the same quarter last year)
- Market Capitalization: $20.05 billion
Company Overview
With a fleet of over 6,500 trucks delivering everything from fresh produce to frozen entrées, US Foods (NYSE: USFD) is a major foodservice distributor that supplies food products and services to approximately 250,000 restaurants, healthcare facilities, hotels, and educational institutions across the United States.
Revenue Growth
Examining a company’s long-term performance can provide clues about its quality. Any business can put up a good quarter or two, but many enduring ones grow for years. Over the last five years, US Foods grew its sales at a 11.5% annual rate. Though this growth is acceptable on an absolute basis, we need to see more than just topline growth for the consumer discretionary sector, which can display significant earnings volatility. This means our bar for the sector is particularly high, reflecting the non-essential and hit-driven nature of the products and services offered. Additionally, five-year CAGR starts around Covid, when revenue was depressed then rebounded.
We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within consumer discretionary, a stretched historical view may miss a company riding a successful new product or trend. US Foods’s recent performance shows its demand has slowed as its annualized revenue growth of 5.2% over the last two years was below its five-year trend. We’re wary when companies in the sector see decelerations in revenue growth, as it could signal changing consumer tastes aided by low switching costs. 
US Foods also reports its number of units sold. Over the last two years, US Foods’s units sold averaged 2.8% year-on-year growth. Because this number is lower than its revenue growth, we can see the company benefited from price increases. 
This quarter, US Foods’s revenue grew by 3.3% year on year to $9.8 billion, falling short of Wall Street’s estimates.
Looking ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 6.7% over the next 12 months, similar to its two-year rate. Although this projection suggests its newer products and services will spur better top-line performance, it is still below average for the sector.
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Operating Margin
US Foods’s operating margin might fluctuated slightly over the last 12 months but has remained more or less the same, averaging 3% over the last two years. This profitability was inadequate for a consumer discretionary business and caused by its suboptimal cost structure.
In Q4, US Foods generated an operating margin profit margin of 3.3%, in line with the same quarter last year. This indicates the company’s overall cost structure has been relatively stable.
Earnings Per Share
We track the long-term change in earnings per share (EPS) for the same reason as long-term revenue growth. Compared to revenue, however, EPS highlights whether a company’s growth is profitable.
US Foods’s EPS grew at an astounding 109% compounded annual growth rate over the last five years, higher than its 11.5% annualized revenue growth. This tells us the company became more profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded.
In Q4, US Foods reported adjusted EPS of $1.04, up from $0.84 in the same quarter last year. This print beat analysts’ estimates by 3.4%. Over the next 12 months, Wall Street expects US Foods’s full-year EPS of $3.98 to grow 18.6%.
Key Takeaways from US Foods’s Q4 Results
It was good to see US Foods beat analysts’ EPS expectations this quarter. On the other hand, its revenue slightly missed. Overall, this quarter could have been better. The stock remained flat at $90.22 immediately after reporting.
So should you invest in US Foods right now? The latest quarter does matter, but not nearly as much as longer-term fundamentals and valuation, when deciding if the stock is a buy. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).
