Chefs' Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Chefs' Warehouse from a "hold" to a "buy," contributing to a consensus analyst stance of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $80.83 (five Buy ratings, two Holds).
• The company reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results with Q1 EPS of $0.40 vs. $0.23 expected and revenue of $1.06 billion (up 11.4% year-over-year), while analysts forecast $2.17 EPS for the fiscal year.
• Significant insider selling has occurred recently — including CEO Christopher Pappas selling 95,908 shares — with insiders offloading 139,309 shares (~$9.06M) over the past 90 days, though insiders still own 11.10% of the company.

Chefs' Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Chefs' Warehouse from $83.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wolfe Research set a $84.00 price target on shares of Chefs' Warehouse in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Benchmark boosted their price target on shares of Chefs' Warehouse from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Chefs' Warehouse from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $83.00 price target on shares of Chefs' Warehouse in a research report on Thursday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $80.83.

Chefs' Warehouse Stock Up 1.6%

CHEF stock opened at $78.83 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.79 and a beta of 1.47. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $64.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $62.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Chefs' Warehouse has a 52 week low of $53.20 and a 52 week high of $79.40.

Chefs' Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.01 billion. Chefs' Warehouse had a net margin of 1.87% and a return on equity of 15.54%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.25 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Chefs' Warehouse will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chefs' Warehouse

In other Chefs' Warehouse news, insider Christina Polychroni sold 3,317 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.45, for a total value of $217,097.65. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,141 shares in the company, valued at $1,972,728.45. The trade was a 9.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Christopher Pappas sold 95,908 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.53, for a total transaction of $5,997,127.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,398,522 shares in the company, valued at $149,979,580.66. The trade was a 3.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 139,309 shares of company stock valued at $9,060,197. Insiders own 11.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chefs' Warehouse

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CHEF. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Chefs' Warehouse by 12.2% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,930,463 shares of the company's stock valued at $182,656,000 after purchasing an additional 318,942 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Chefs' Warehouse by 2,871.7% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 251,376 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,668,000 after purchasing an additional 242,917 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Chefs' Warehouse by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,104,826 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,864,000 after purchasing an additional 173,155 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Chefs' Warehouse by 230.8% in the 3rd quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 85,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,958,000 after purchasing an additional 150,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Creek Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Chefs' Warehouse in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $7,431,000. 91.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Chefs' Warehouse Company Profile

Chefs' Warehouse, Inc is a specialty food distributor that supplies a broad range of high‐end ingredients and culinary products to professional chefs, restaurants, hotels, and other foodservice operators. Headquartered in Maspeth, New York, the company sources its portfolio from local artisans, boutique producers and leading global suppliers. Its core offerings include fresh and frozen proteins, specialty cuts of meat and seafood, handcrafted cheeses and charcuterie, seasonal produce, value‐added preparations, pantry staples and premium desserts and beverages.

The company operates a network of distribution centers strategically located in major metropolitan markets across North America.

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