NDLS
Noodles & Company (NDLS) 10Y Growth Potential Analysis (2026)
Overall Score
Growth Durability
Revenue base remains small, with EV/Sales at 0.66x, but the business is still not demonstrating durable top-line expansion.
Gross margin is only 4.9% and operating margin is 3.3%, leaving limited room for sustained growth without stronger pricing or volume leverage.
Profitability
TTM net margin is -4.7% and EBIT margin is -2.6%, indicating the company is still not consistently profitable.
Return on assets is -9.9% and return on tangible assets is -10.2%, showing weak asset-level earnings power despite a positive ROE.
Financial Strength
Liquidity is very tight, with a current ratio of 0.29x and quick ratio of 0.15x, suggesting limited near-term balance sheet flexibility.
Leverage remains elevated, with net debt to EBITDA at 20.2x and debt to assets above 1.0x, while working capital is deeply negative.
Cash Flow Quality
Operating cash flow is positive, but free cash flow conversion is weak, with FCF/OCF at 28.0% and FCF yield only 4.5%.
Income quality is negative at -0.58, implying reported earnings are not translating cleanly into cash generation.
Valuation
The stock screens cheap on sales at 0.17x EV/Sales and 22.3x EV/FCF, but the low multiples reflect the company’s weak profitability and balance sheet risk.
Negative earnings and book value metrics limit the usefulness of traditional earnings and book-based valuation anchors.
Sources
- Company filings (10-K, 10-Q, investor presentations)
- Financial and market data providers
- Public news and industry information
🔒 Go Beyond This Framework
This is one of 10 institutional-grade frameworks Invetso runs on Noodles & Company. Unlock the complete analysis — SWOT, Economic Moat, Porter’s Five Forces, Management, PESTLE and the Invetso Quality Score.

