Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Sells 174,027 Shares of The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. $CHEF

Key Points

• Pictet Asset Management Holding SA cut its stake in The Chefs' Warehouse by 43.3% in the first quarter, selling 174,027 shares and leaving it with 228,068 shares worth about $13.6 million.
• Chefs' Warehouse reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $0.40 beating estimates and revenue of $1.06 billion topping expectations, while sales rose 11.4% year over year.
• Insider selling and analyst views were mixed: CEO Christopher Pappas and insider Christina Polychroni both sold shares, while analysts currently have a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $83.83.

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lessened its stake in The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF - Free Report) by 43.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 228,068 shares of the company's stock after selling 174,027 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned 0.56% of Chefs' Warehouse worth $13,559,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Chefs' Warehouse by 229.5% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 458 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 319 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its position in shares of Chefs' Warehouse by 515.3% in the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 523 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 438 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Chefs' Warehouse during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of Chefs' Warehouse by 30.7% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 800 shares of the company's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vestcor Inc purchased a new stake in Chefs' Warehouse during the third quarter valued at approximately $57,000. 91.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Chefs' Warehouse Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Chefs' Warehouse stock opened at $95.62 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.33. The company has a market cap of $3.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.12 and a beta of 1.39. The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $53.20 and a fifty-two week high of $97.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.18.

Chefs' Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.17. Chefs' Warehouse had a net margin of 1.87% and a return on equity of 15.54%. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.25 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. will post 2.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CHEF has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Chefs' Warehouse from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Benchmark increased their price objective on Chefs' Warehouse from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $83.00 price objective on shares of Chefs' Warehouse in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. BTIG Research boosted their target price on Chefs' Warehouse from $82.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Chefs' Warehouse from $83.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $83.83.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Chefs' Warehouse news, insider Christina Polychroni sold 4,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.21, for a total value of $356,445.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 24,642 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,951,892.82. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher Pappas sold 125,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.00, for a total value of $9,750,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,189,453 shares of the company's stock, valued at $170,777,334. This trade represents a 5.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 11.10% of the company's stock.

About Chefs' Warehouse

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CHEF? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF - Free Report).

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.