Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) Hits New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $60.23 and last traded at $60.11, with a volume of 1320298 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $59.99.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAKE has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $67.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Argus set a $60.00 price objective on Cheesecake Factory in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $55.00 to $48.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $54.00.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $51.29. The company has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a PE ratio of 18.84, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.14.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.12. Cheesecake Factory had a return on equity of 46.06% and a net margin of 4.33%. The company had revenue of $927.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $927.17 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.73 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated will post 3.71 EPS for the current year.

Cheesecake Factory Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 14th. Cheesecake Factory's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.86%.

Insider Transactions at Cheesecake Factory

In other news, EVP Scarlett May sold 20,800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.02, for a total value of $1,165,216.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,872 shares in the company, valued at $1,281,289.44. This trade represents a 47.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Keith Carango sold 50,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.12, for a total value of $2,783,560.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 20,774 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,145,062.88. The trade was a 70.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 133,000 shares of company stock worth $7,456,992 over the last 90 days. 8.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Cheesecake Factory during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in Cheesecake Factory during the 1st quarter worth approximately $49,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Cheesecake Factory by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,060 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 530 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Cheesecake Factory by 1,149.5% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 1,207 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Cheesecake Factory during the 1st quarter worth approximately $72,000. 94.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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