Matthew Rothway

Matthew Rothway, on for Mark Carden, asked for details on trends in the chain and healthcare segments, noting the weakness in chains and acceleration in healthcare. He also inquired about the company's sales force hiring plans for the year.

Answer

CFO Dirk Locascio explained that the decline in the chain segment was in line with broader industry traffic and that the company's focus remains on the more profitable independent, healthcare, and hospitality segments. He highlighted the continued strong, differentiated growth in healthcare. CEO Dave Flitman added that the company's hiring plan remains a target of mid-single-digit growth for the sales force, consistent with prior years.

Matthew Roth of UBS inquired about current consumer demand behaviors, such as trade-down or shifts in cuisine types, and the outlook for food inflation, particularly any potential impact from tariffs.

Answer

COO Scott McPherson noted a strong recovery in independent case volume in April, with the Mexican and Convenience foodservice segments performing well. CEO George Holm attributed the challenging quarter primarily to severe weather in February. CFO Patrick Hagerty stated that Q4 inflation is expected to be similar to Q3 and that it is too early to assess tariff impacts, a point echoed by Scott McPherson, who added that the main concern is the broader macroeconomic effect on consumers rather than direct costs.

Matthew Rothway, on for Mark Carden, asked for an explanation of the Q1 gross margin outperformance and why that strength is not fully reflected in the full-year outlook.

Answer

CFO Chris Miller attributed the Q1 beat primarily to lower inventory shrinkage resulting from improved systems and processes, which he noted is a sustainable gain. While there is potential for further margin upside from assortment mix (opportunistic and private label) in the back half of the year, he stated it was too early to quantify the full impact and build it into guidance.

Matthew Rothway from UBS asked for an update on the progress toward achieving the previously announced $150 million cost efficiency goal.

Answer

President & CFO Matteo Tarditi clarified that the $150 million is a target for the three-year strategic plan, not a single year. He cited the 65-basis-point reduction in OpEx as a percentage of sales in Q1 as a key proof point, driven by Lean management, improved throughput, and a more decentralized, leaner organization.

Matthew Rothway of UBS Group AG, on behalf of Mark Carden, asked what was driving lower supply chain costs and whether the full-year expectation for flat supply chain costs remains.

Answer

CFO Robert Helm explained that while tariffs are a slight headwind within supply chain costs, this is being offset by favorable ocean contract negotiations, positive domestic transportation rates, and record efficiency at the distribution centers. These factors contribute to the overall cost management.