Equities Analysts Set Expectations for CAKE Q1 Earnings

Key Points

• Zacks Research
• The company beat the last quarter with $1.00 EPS (vs. $0.98 expected) and $961.6M revenue (+4.4% YoY), and increased its quarterly dividend to $0.30 (annualized $1.20, ~1.9% yield).
• Analyst sentiment is mixed—6 Buys, 7 Holds and 4 Sells—with an average price target of $61.81, while the stock trades near $63 (52‑week range $42.69–$69.70).

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Zacks Research lifted their Q1 2026 EPS estimates for shares of Cheesecake Factory in a report issued on Wednesday, March 4th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the restaurant operator will post earnings of $1.03 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $0.99. The consensus estimate for Cheesecake Factory's current full-year earnings is $3.71 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Cheesecake Factory's Q2 2026 earnings at $1.20 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $0.71 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.05 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $4.00 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $1.09 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $1.26 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $0.74 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $1.13 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $4.22 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $4.78 EPS.

A number of other analysts have also commented on CAKE. Argus cut their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $72.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. UBS Group set a $53.00 target price on Cheesecake Factory and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Cheesecake Factory from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $61.81.

Cheesecake Factory Trading Down 1.6%

NASDAQ CAKE opened at $62.99 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.52, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.97. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $59.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $55.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.59. Cheesecake Factory has a 52 week low of $42.69 and a 52 week high of $69.70.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $961.56 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $949.03 million. Cheesecake Factory had a return on equity of 45.68% and a net margin of 3.96%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.04 earnings per share.

Cheesecake Factory Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. This is a boost from Cheesecake Factory's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. Cheesecake Factory's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.09%.

Insider Transactions at Cheesecake Factory

In other news, insider Ashley W. Hanscom sold 2,951 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.64, for a total value of $193,703.64. Following the transaction, the insider owned 11,041 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $724,731.24. This represents a 21.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Alexander L. Cappello sold 635 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.74, for a total value of $40,474.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,171 shares of the company's stock, valued at $393,339.54. This trade represents a 9.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,376 shares of company stock worth $1,010,219. Insiders own 8.40% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Woodline Partners LP raised its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 1,059.3% in the 3rd quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 618,056 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $33,771,000 after purchasing an additional 564,744 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 24.7% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,057,118 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $112,401,000 after purchasing an additional 407,223 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 214.3% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 512,085 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $25,850,000 after purchasing an additional 349,168 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP lifted its position in Cheesecake Factory by 1,583.7% during the fourth quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 287,219 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $14,499,000 after purchasing an additional 270,160 shares during the period. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 54.0% during the third quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 747,046 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $40,819,000 after buying an additional 262,081 shares in the last quarter. 94.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Cheesecake Factory

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.