The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its position in The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,502,069 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 66,395 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 0.11% of Cheesecake Factory worth $192,627,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Seven Eight Capital LP grew its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 231.4% during the 4th quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP now owns 30,086 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,053,000 after buying an additional 21,007 shares during the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC acquired a new stake in Cheesecake Factory in the fourth quarter worth about $2,532,000. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the fourth quarter worth about $727,000. Connable Office Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the fourth quarter valued at about $458,000. Finally, IPG Investment Advisors LLC raised 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 valued at $5,311,000 after purchasing an additional 77,575 shares during the last quarter. 94.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of CAKE stock opened at $37.83 on Wednesday. The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated has a twelve month low of $28.58 and a twelve month high of $41.25. The stock has a market cap of $1.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.51. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $37.96 and a 200 day moving average of $35.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

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

Cheesecake Factory Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 22nd were given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.85%. Cheesecake Factory’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CAKE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Cheesecake Factory from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Citigroup upgraded Cheesecake Factory from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $38.00 to $47.00 in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Cheesecake Factory currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $39.58.

Insider Transactions at Cheesecake Factory

In other news, insider Keith Carango sold 3,785 shares of Cheesecake Factory stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.10, for a total value of $151,778.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 28,072 shares in the company, valued at $1,125,687.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 8.10% of the company’s stock.

About Cheesecake Factory

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.