Legato Capital Management LLC Takes Position in The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF)

Legato Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 14,485 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $789,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Chefs' Warehouse by 50.6% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 542 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Chefs' Warehouse by 27.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,537 shares of the company's stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the period. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in Chefs' Warehouse in the first quarter valued at $106,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new position in Chefs' Warehouse in the fourth quarter valued at $201,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Chefs' Warehouse in the fourth quarter valued at $224,000. 91.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chefs' Warehouse

In other news, CAO Tim Mccauley sold 17,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.07, for a total value of $1,138,725.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 52,050 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,386,893.50. The trade was a 25.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 11.90% of the company's stock.

Chefs' Warehouse Stock Up 0.5%

NASDAQ CHEF traded up $0.34 during trading on Friday, reaching $62.23. 323,385 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 489,685. The stock has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.21 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 2.05. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $63.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.57. The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. has a 1 year low of $35.59 and a 1 year high of $68.28.

Chefs' Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.04. Chefs' Warehouse had a return on equity of 13.15% and a net margin of 1.65%. The company had revenue of $950.75 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $927.34 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.15 EPS. Chefs' Warehouse's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. will post 1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CHEF. UBS Group lifted their target price on Chefs' Warehouse from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. BTIG Research reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Chefs' Warehouse in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Chefs' Warehouse from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Chefs' Warehouse presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $67.40.

Chefs' Warehouse Company Profile

The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes specialty food and center-of-the-plate products in the United States, the Middle East, and Canada. The company's product portfolio includes specialty food products, such as artisan charcuterie, specialty cheeses, unique oils and vinegars, truffles, caviar, chocolate, and pastry products; and center-of-the-plate products consisting of custom cut beef, seafood, and hormone-free poultry, as well as broadline food products comprising cooking oils, butter, eggs, milk, and flour.