The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF) Receives Average Recommendation of "Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts broadly favor Chefs’ Warehouse: Seven firms give the stock a consensus “Buy” rating, with five buys, one strong buy and one hold. The average 12-month price target is $115.67.
• Recent financial results exceeded expectations: Quarterly earnings were $0.78 per share versus the $0.59 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $1.17 billion, up 12.9% year over year.
• Insiders have been selling shares: Company insiders sold 137,752 shares worth approximately $15.2 million during the last quarter, including a $11.0 million sale by CEO Christopher Pappas. Institutional investors nevertheless own 91.55% of the stock.

The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Buy" from the seven research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $115.67.

CHEF has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group increased their price objective on Chefs' Warehouse from $114.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Zacks Research raised Chefs' Warehouse from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Chefs' Warehouse from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Friday, September 18th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Chefs' Warehouse from $123.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Chefs' Warehouse from $97.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th.

Insider Transactions at Chefs' Warehouse

In other news, insider Christina Polychroni sold 2,752 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.00, for a total transaction of $308,224.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 22,014 shares in the company, valued at $2,465,568. The trade was a 11.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Christopher Pappas sold 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.11, for a total transaction of $11,011,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,105,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $231,834,402.80. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 137,752 shares of company stock worth $15,203,174. Company insiders own 11.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chefs' Warehouse

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CHEF. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Chefs' Warehouse during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $993,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in shares of Chefs' Warehouse by 4.2% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 9,697 shares of the company's stock valued at $932,000 after buying an additional 389 shares in the last quarter. Nykredit A S acquired a new position in Chefs' Warehouse during the second quarter worth $120,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in Chefs' Warehouse during the second quarter worth $1,220,000. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Chefs' Warehouse in the second quarter worth $222,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.55% of the company's stock.

Chefs' Warehouse Trading Down 0.2%

NASDAQ CHEF opened at $111.01 on Thursday. The firm's fifty day moving average is $111.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.13. Chefs' Warehouse has a one year low of $54.84 and a one year high of $118.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 2.15. The firm has a market cap of $4.53 billion, a PE ratio of 52.86 and a beta of 1.44.

Chefs' Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.12 billion. Chefs' Warehouse had a net margin of 2.09% and a return on equity of 16.95%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.52 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Chefs' Warehouse will post 2.54 earnings per share for the current year.

About Chefs' Warehouse

The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc is a specialty food distributor that supplies professional chefs, restaurants, hotels, culinary institutions, specialty retailers and other foodservice customers. The company focuses on products that are often difficult to source through broadline distributors, including specialty and center-of-the-plate items.

Its product offerings include fresh produce, seafood, meat and poultry, dairy, imported and domestic cheeses, charcuterie, specialty grocery products, dry goods, frozen foods, and culinary supplies.

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