UBS Group Raises Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) Price Target to $41.00

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) had its target price lifted by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $36.00 to $41.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “sell” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. UBS Group’s target price indicates a potential downside of 17.55% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Cheesecake Factory from $40.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays boosted their target price on Cheesecake Factory from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Cheesecake Factory from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Cheesecake Factory from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $49.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.40.

Cheesecake Factory Price Performance

CAKE stock opened at $49.73 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.44. Cheesecake Factory has a 52-week low of $31.24 and a 52-week high of $52.10. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.31.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The restaurant operator reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.11. Cheesecake Factory had a return on equity of 43.90% and a net margin of 3.63%. The business had revenue of $865.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $866.13 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.39 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Cheesecake Factory will post 3.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cheesecake Factory

In other Cheesecake Factory news, insider Keith Carango sold 13,095 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.88, for a total transaction of $653,178.60. Following the sale, the insider now owns 14,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $747,052.76. The trade was a 46.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 8.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 108.1% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 616 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance bought a new position in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the second quarter worth $213,000. Glenmede Trust Co. NA bought a new position in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the third quarter worth $223,000. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the third quarter worth $227,000. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 13.4% in the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 6,771 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 802 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.48% of the company’s stock.

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.