JPMorgan Chase & Co. Boosts Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) Price Target to $105.00

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) had its price objective increased by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $92.00 to $105.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target points to a potential downside of 8.13% from the stock’s previous close.

CAKE has been the subject of several other reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $76.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Cheesecake Factory to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Northcoast Research lowered Cheesecake Factory from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $91.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.47.

Cheesecake Factory Trading Up 0.7%

NASDAQ:CAKE opened at $114.29 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $91.94 and a 200 day moving average of $72.28. Cheesecake Factory has a 52 week low of $43.07 and a 52 week high of $118.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.00.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The restaurant operator reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $999.54 million. Cheesecake Factory had a net margin of 4.61% and a return on equity of 43.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.16 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Cheesecake Factory will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Scarlett May sold 7,978 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.66, for a total transaction of $819,021.48. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 18,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,872,621.06. This trade represents a 30.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, President David M. Gordon sold 31,950 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.03, for a total value of $3,515,458.50. Following the sale, the president directly owned 26,875 shares in the company, valued at $2,957,056.25. This trade represents a 54.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 216,239 shares of company stock worth $22,463,500. 8.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CAKE. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. NFSG Corp raised its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 115.8% during the first quarter. NFSG Corp now owns 682 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the second quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in Cheesecake Factory by 973.2% during the fourth quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 880 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 798 shares during the period. Finally, Arax Advisory Partners bought a new position in Cheesecake Factory during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Institutional investors own 94.48% of the company’s stock.

Cheesecake Factory Company Profile

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.