The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the fourteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $39.58.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on CAKE shares. Raymond James raised Cheesecake Factory from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 9th. Stephens increased their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. Citigroup raised Cheesecake Factory from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $38.00 to $47.00 in a report on Friday, May 10th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Cheesecake Factory from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 9th.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Down 1.1 %

CAKE stock opened at $40.01 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.43. The company has a market capitalization of $2.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.35, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.48. Cheesecake Factory has a fifty-two week low of $28.58 and a fifty-two week high of $41.25. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $37.21 and a 200-day moving average of $35.61.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The restaurant operator reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $891.22 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $890.49 million. Cheesecake Factory had a return on equity of 42.15% and a net margin of 3.07%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.61 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Cheesecake Factory will post 3.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Cheesecake Factory Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 22nd were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.70%. Cheesecake Factory’s payout ratio is 49.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Keith Carango sold 3,785 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.10, for a total transaction of $151,778.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 28,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,125,687.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 8.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. IPG Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 104.7% in the 4th quarter. IPG Investment Advisors LLC now owns 151,695 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $5,311,000 after buying an additional 77,575 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the 4th quarter worth approximately $914,000. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the 4th quarter worth approximately $727,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,532,000. Finally, South Dakota Investment Council bought a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the 4th quarter worth approximately $844,000. 94.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cheesecake Factory Company Profile

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated operates and licenses restaurants in the United States and Canada. The company operates bakeries that produce cheesecakes and other baked products for its restaurants, international licensees, third-party bakery customers, external foodservice operators, retailers, and distributors.