Farmer Bros.' Q3 2025: Navigating Contradictions in Margins, Private Label Growth, and Operational Challenges

Gross margin maintenance, private label sales growth and strategy, fulfillment rates and operational improvements, challenges to expanding growth are the key contradictions discussed in Farmer Bros.' latest 2025Q3 earnings call.



Financial Performance and Margin Improvement:
- Farmer Brothers reported positive adjusted EBITDA of $1.7 million for Q3, marking the third consecutive quarter of improvement.
- Gross margin increased to 42.1%, up 200 basis points year-over-year, driven by strong cost management and proactive pricing strategies despite challenging market conditions.

Volume Declines and Customer Trends:
- Total coffee pounds were down 9.4% compared to Q3 2024, attributed to downstream degradation in customer volume and count.
- Despite these declines, the company maintained gross margins and improved adjusted EBITDA results, indicating effective cost management.

Operational Efficiency and Cost Reduction:
- Operating expenses, adjusted for asset sales, declined 50 basis points as a percentage of net sales, reflecting ongoing progress in rightsizing the cost structure.
- Farmer Brothers completed additional rightsizing, including the departure of the Chief Operations Officer, to better manage the challenging operating environment.

Product Penetration and Customer Expansion:
- The company launched initiatives focused on driving product penetration and adding density across existing DSD routes to drive top-line growth and customer retention.
- This strategy leverages the company's comprehensive customer service and white-glove approach, setting it apart in the current economic environment.

Tariff Management and Global Sourcing:
- Farmer Brothers' global sourcing relationships and tiered brand pyramid strategy provide flexibility in navigating potential tariff impacts on cost structure.
- The company does not anticipate immediate tariff impacts on COGS in the current fiscal year, ensuring stability in its procurement and pricing strategies.