The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) Receives $54.63 Average Target Price from Brokerages

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the sixteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $54.63.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CAKE shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $50.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $67.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Argus set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a research report on Thursday, May 1st.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cheesecake Factory news, insider Keith Carango sold 50,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.12, for a total transaction of $2,783,560.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,145,062.88. This trade represents a 70.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Matthew Eliot Clark sold 42,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.00, for a total transaction of $2,402,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 40,878 shares in the company, valued at $2,289,168. The trade was a 51.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 133,000 shares of company stock valued at $7,456,992. Insiders own 8.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CAKE. Truist Financial Corp grew its position in Cheesecake Factory by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 8,045 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $382,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the 4th quarter worth $2,356,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 208.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,628 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $125,000 after acquiring an additional 1,777 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 150.0% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,553 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $169,000 after acquiring an additional 2,132 shares during the period. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the 4th quarter worth $43,000. 94.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cheesecake Factory Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:CAKE opened at $65.21 on Thursday. Cheesecake Factory has a 52 week low of $33.50 and a 52 week high of $65.99. The company’s 50 day moving average is $56.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85. The company has a market cap of $3.23 billion, a PE ratio of 20.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.16.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.12. Cheesecake Factory had a net margin of 4.33% and a return on equity of 46.06%. The company had revenue of $927.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $927.17 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.73 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Cheesecake Factory will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheesecake Factory Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 14th. Cheesecake Factory’s payout ratio is currently 33.86%.

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.