Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) Hits New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $81.86 and last traded at $82.37, with a volume of 126491 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $78.42.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAKE has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $68.00 target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Barclays boosted their price target on Cheesecake Factory from $58.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Cheesecake Factory from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $58.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $66.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $67.12.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $68.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $62.34. The company has a market cap of $4.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.04, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $978.83 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $964.57 million. Cheesecake Factory had a net margin of 4.34% and a return on equity of 43.74%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.93 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated will post 4.01 EPS for the current year.

Cheesecake Factory Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Cheesecake Factory’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.09%.

Insider Activity at Cheesecake Factory

In related news, Director Alexander L. Cappello sold 2,490 shares of Cheesecake Factory stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.90, for a total value of $161,601.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 6,171 shares in the company, valued at $400,497.90. This trade represents a 28.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman David Overton sold 104,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.02, for a total value of $6,346,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 3,079,779 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $187,928,114.58. This trade represents a 3.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 8.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CAKE. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 226.5% during the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 604 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its position in Cheesecake Factory by 661.7% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 716 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 622 shares during the last quarter. NFSG Corp increased its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 115.8% in the first quarter. NFSG Corp now owns 682 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 973.2% during the 4th quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 880 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 798 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arax Advisory Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the fourth quarter worth $50,000. 94.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.