Legato Capital Management LLC Invests $423,000 in CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA)

Key Points

• Legato Capital Management LLC has acquired 4,890 shares of CAVA Group, Inc., valued at approximately $423,000, as reported in their SEC filing.
• Several institutional investors have significantly increased their stakes in CAVA, with Jennison Associates LLC leading with a 246.1% increase to own over 8.5 million shares worth around $736 million.
• CAVA Group reported earnings of $0.22 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates, and experienced a 28.1% revenue growth year-over-year.

Legato Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 4,890 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $423,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in CAVA Group by 246.1% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 8,519,459 shares of the company's stock valued at $736,166,000 after purchasing an additional 6,057,727 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of CAVA Group by 20.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,011,602 shares of the company's stock worth $903,709,000 after acquiring an additional 1,357,187 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of CAVA Group by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,976,353 shares of the company's stock worth $448,533,000 after acquiring an additional 491,320 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of CAVA Group by 33.0% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,464,987 shares of the company's stock worth $165,243,000 after acquiring an additional 363,814 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its position in shares of CAVA Group by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,389,327 shares of the company's stock worth $156,716,000 after acquiring an additional 31,077 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.15% of the company's stock.

CAVA Group Stock Performance

NYSE CAVA traded up $1.78 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $88.04. The company had a trading volume of 2,124,605 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,079,490. CAVA Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $70.00 and a 1-year high of $172.43. The company has a market cap of $10.18 billion, a PE ratio of 149.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.39 and a beta of 2.65. The business has a 50 day moving average of $82.74 and a 200-day moving average of $95.03.

CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.08. CAVA Group had a net margin of 13.70% and a return on equity of 10.61%. The business had revenue of $331.83 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $327.98 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.12 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 28.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that CAVA Group, Inc. will post 0.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CAVA. Morgan Stanley set a $107.00 price objective on CAVA Group and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays upped their price objective on CAVA Group from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on CAVA Group from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised CAVA Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on CAVA Group from $115.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CAVA Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $115.06.

Insider Buying and Selling at CAVA Group

In related news, CAO Adam David Phillips sold 739 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.16, for a total value of $55,543.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 11,063 shares in the company, valued at $831,495.08. This trade represents a 6.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Tricia K. Tolivar sold 4,845 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.16, for a total transaction of $364,150.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 236,345 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,763,690.20. The trade was a 2.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 67,951 shares of company stock valued at $5,409,027. Corporate insiders own 6.80% of the company's stock.

CAVA Group Company Profile

CAVA Group, Inc owns and operates a chain of restaurants under the CAVA brand in the United States. The company also offers dips, spreads, and dressings through grocery stores. In addition, the company provides online and mobile ordering platforms. Cava Group, Inc was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Washington, the District of Columbia.