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CHWY Is Tapping AI and Pet Health to Expand Margins in 2026
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Key Takeaways
Chewy is using pet healthcare and AI to build a clearer fiscal 2026 earnings story.
SmartPak and Modern Animal are expected to add $150 million to Chewy's fiscal 2026 net sales.
CHWY lowered its 2026 sales outlook as premiumization and product attachment rates face pressure.
Chewy, Inc. (CHWY - Free Report) is trying to turn two investments into a clearer earnings story in fiscal 2026. Pet healthcare can broaden the revenue base, while artificial intelligence can reduce cost to serve.
The setup is not without friction. Consumers remain cautious, but CHWY’s margin levers are becoming more structural than inflation-driven.
How CHWY Is Building a Bigger Health Platform
Chewy’s healthcare push spans vet clinics, pharmacy capabilities, PracticeHub, compounding, CarePlus, SmartPak and Modern Animal. That gives the company more points of contact with pet parents beyond food, treats and supplies.
The logic is customer depth. Roughly 40% of Chewy Vet Care customers are new to Chewy, and those customers tend to reach year-one net sales per active customer of about $900.
SmartPak is expected to add $80 million to fiscal 2026 net sales, while Modern Animal is expected to contribute $70 million. About 20,000 veterinary practices were enrolled in PracticeHub, representing an estimated 50% of U.S. vet clinics.
These assets can link commerce, pharmacy and clinical care. That can raise lifetime value and reduce reliance on retail alone.
Why AI Matters More to Chewy Margins Now
Chewy, which competes with Petco Health and Wellness Company (WOOF - Free Report) and Central Garden & Pet Company (CENT - Free Report) , is embedding AI across customer service, pharmacy operations, fulfillment and marketing workflows. The goal is lower cost to serve, faster processes and better service quality.
Management expects AI-driven efficiencies to deliver a low tens of millions of dollars benefit in fiscal 2026. A larger ramp is expected in 2027 and beyond.
AI also supports personalization, search relevance and marketing productivity, which can help conversion and engagement.
That makes AI a margin and growth-quality lever. It can help fund investments in health, clinics, fulfillment optimization and customer acquisition.
Chewy’s margin story is also supported by sponsored ads, automation, forecasting and fulfillment improvements. These tools matter because the company is still investing while trying to expand adjusted earnings faster than sales.
In the first quarter of fiscal 2026, gross margin increased 50 basis points year over year to 30.1%. Adjusted EBITDA rose 31.3% to $253.1 million, and adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 130 basis points to 7.5%.
Sponsored ads, favorable category mix, supply-chain efficiencies, marketing productivity and operating discipline all contributed to the improvement. The company maintained fiscal 2026 adjusted EBITDA margin guidance of 6.6-6.8%.
Why Consumer Trends Still Limit Chewy’s Upside
The near-term issue is demand quality. Management cited incremental pressure on premiumization and product attachment rates across existing customers, which is weighing on net sales per active customer.
Some of Chewy’s higher-value initiatives depend on customers buying more across categories. If consumers stay focused on essentials, healthcare and AI benefits may not fully show up in revenue growth right away.
Chewy, which carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell), lowered its fiscal 2026 net sales outlook to $13.40-$13.55 billion from $13.6-$13.75 billion. The company no longer assumes a meaningful acceleration in consumer spending for the rest of fiscal 2026. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
How Zacks Signals Shape the Trend Thesis
The bottom line is that CHWY has a credible emerging-trends story, but the earnings path is not fully de-risked. Healthcare expands the opportunity, and AI gives management an efficiency route, yet softer consumer behavior still limits near-term conviction.
A Neutral Zacks signal fits that balance. It points to a stock expected to perform in line with the market rather than one with a clearly superior near-term setup.
Investors should also separate that signal from Zacks Rank and Style Scores. The Rank is built around earnings estimate revisions, while Style Scores assess Value, Growth, Momentum and the combined VGM profile.
A stronger Rank-and-Style combination would typically improve the near-term screen. For CHWY, the trend thesis is improving, but the consumer backdrop and execution demands still argue for a measured view.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
CHWY Is Tapping AI and Pet Health to Expand Margins in 2026
Key Takeaways
Chewy, Inc. (CHWY - Free Report) is trying to turn two investments into a clearer earnings story in fiscal 2026. Pet healthcare can broaden the revenue base, while artificial intelligence can reduce cost to serve.
The setup is not without friction. Consumers remain cautious, but CHWY’s margin levers are becoming more structural than inflation-driven.
How CHWY Is Building a Bigger Health Platform
Chewy’s healthcare push spans vet clinics, pharmacy capabilities, PracticeHub, compounding, CarePlus, SmartPak and Modern Animal. That gives the company more points of contact with pet parents beyond food, treats and supplies.
The logic is customer depth. Roughly 40% of Chewy Vet Care customers are new to Chewy, and those customers tend to reach year-one net sales per active customer of about $900.
SmartPak is expected to add $80 million to fiscal 2026 net sales, while Modern Animal is expected to contribute $70 million. About 20,000 veterinary practices were enrolled in PracticeHub, representing an estimated 50% of U.S. vet clinics.
These assets can link commerce, pharmacy and clinical care. That can raise lifetime value and reduce reliance on retail alone.
Why AI Matters More to Chewy Margins Now
Chewy, which competes with Petco Health and Wellness Company (WOOF - Free Report) and Central Garden & Pet Company (CENT - Free Report) , is embedding AI across customer service, pharmacy operations, fulfillment and marketing workflows. The goal is lower cost to serve, faster processes and better service quality.
Management expects AI-driven efficiencies to deliver a low tens of millions of dollars benefit in fiscal 2026. A larger ramp is expected in 2027 and beyond.
AI also supports personalization, search relevance and marketing productivity, which can help conversion and engagement.
That makes AI a margin and growth-quality lever. It can help fund investments in health, clinics, fulfillment optimization and customer acquisition.
Chewy Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Chewy price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Chewy Quote
What CHWY Gains From Ads and Automation
Chewy’s margin story is also supported by sponsored ads, automation, forecasting and fulfillment improvements. These tools matter because the company is still investing while trying to expand adjusted earnings faster than sales.
In the first quarter of fiscal 2026, gross margin increased 50 basis points year over year to 30.1%. Adjusted EBITDA rose 31.3% to $253.1 million, and adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 130 basis points to 7.5%.
Sponsored ads, favorable category mix, supply-chain efficiencies, marketing productivity and operating discipline all contributed to the improvement. The company maintained fiscal 2026 adjusted EBITDA margin guidance of 6.6-6.8%.
Why Consumer Trends Still Limit Chewy’s Upside
The near-term issue is demand quality. Management cited incremental pressure on premiumization and product attachment rates across existing customers, which is weighing on net sales per active customer.
Some of Chewy’s higher-value initiatives depend on customers buying more across categories. If consumers stay focused on essentials, healthcare and AI benefits may not fully show up in revenue growth right away.
Chewy, which carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell), lowered its fiscal 2026 net sales outlook to $13.40-$13.55 billion from $13.6-$13.75 billion. The company no longer assumes a meaningful acceleration in consumer spending for the rest of fiscal 2026. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
How Zacks Signals Shape the Trend Thesis
The bottom line is that CHWY has a credible emerging-trends story, but the earnings path is not fully de-risked. Healthcare expands the opportunity, and AI gives management an efficiency route, yet softer consumer behavior still limits near-term conviction.
A Neutral Zacks signal fits that balance. It points to a stock expected to perform in line with the market rather than one with a clearly superior near-term setup.
Investors should also separate that signal from Zacks Rank and Style Scores. The Rank is built around earnings estimate revisions, while Style Scores assess Value, Growth, Momentum and the combined VGM profile.
A stronger Rank-and-Style combination would typically improve the near-term screen. For CHWY, the trend thesis is improving, but the consumer backdrop and execution demands still argue for a measured view.