The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) Receives $61.81 Average Price Target from Brokerages

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seventeen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $61.8125.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CAKE shares. Citigroup raised their price target on Cheesecake Factory from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 price objective on Cheesecake Factory in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Stephens lowered Cheesecake Factory from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Mizuho set a $75.00 target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Cheesecake Factory from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Performance

NASDAQ CAKE opened at $57.57 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. Cheesecake Factory has a 12-month low of $42.69 and a 12-month high of $69.70. The firm has a market cap of $2.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.75, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.97.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.02. Cheesecake Factory had a return on equity of 45.68% and a net margin of 3.96%.The firm had revenue of $961.56 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $949.03 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.04 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Cheesecake Factory will post 3.71 EPS for the current year.

Cheesecake Factory Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This is a boost from Cheesecake Factory’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Cheesecake Factory’s payout ratio is 39.09%.

Insider Transactions at Cheesecake Factory

In other news, EVP Spero G. Alex sold 4,790 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.00, for a total transaction of $316,140.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Alexander L. Cappello sold 635 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.74, for a total transaction of $40,474.90. Following the sale, the director owned 6,171 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $393,339.54. This represents a 9.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 20,582 shares of company stock valued at $1,337,936. Company insiders own 8.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CAKE. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its position in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 226.5% in the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 604 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 419 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 39.2% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 632 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 661.7% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 716 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 622 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 973.2% in the fourth quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 880 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 798 shares during the period. Finally, Arax Advisory Partners purchased a new stake in Cheesecake Factory in the fourth quarter worth $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.48% of the company’s stock.

About Cheesecake Factory

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) is an American restaurant company and distributor renowned for its full-service casual-dining concept and specialty cheesecakes. Headquartered in Calabasas Hills, California, the company operates more than 200 restaurants under The Cheesecake Factory® brand across the United States, Puerto Rico and select international markets. In addition to sit-down dining, Cheesecake Factory franchised locations offer catering and take-out services, while a separate manufacturing arm supplies branded cheesecakes and desserts to supermarkets, hotels and other foodservice operators.

The origins of the brand trace back to a small cheesecake bakery founded in Detroit in the 1940s.