The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) Shares Sold by Woodline Partners LP

Woodline Partners LP lowered its position in shares of The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE - Free Report) by 87.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 70,777 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 501,077 shares during the quarter. Woodline Partners LP owned about 0.14% of Cheesecake Factory worth $3,358,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Cheesecake Factory during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 1,149.5% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 1,207 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 46.9% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,321 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 741 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 208.8% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,628 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $125,000 after acquiring an additional 1,777 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.48% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Keith Carango sold 50,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.12, for a total value of $2,783,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,774 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,145,062.88. This represents a 70.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Matthew Eliot Clark sold 42,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.00, for a total value of $2,402,400.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 40,878 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,289,168. This trade represents a 51.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 8.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Cheesecake Factory Price Performance

Cheesecake Factory stock traded up $0.46 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $55.59. The company had a trading volume of 845,345 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,193,795. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.44 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated has a 12-month low of $33.50 and a 12-month high of $57.32. The company has a market capitalization of $2.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.11. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $50.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.18.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.12. Cheesecake Factory had a net margin of 4.38% and a return on equity of 45.89%. The company had revenue of $927.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $927.17 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.73 EPS. Cheesecake Factory's revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated will post 3.71 EPS for the current year.

Cheesecake Factory Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 14th. Cheesecake Factory's payout ratio is currently 33.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CAKE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wedbush raised their target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Cheesecake Factory from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Cheesecake Factory from $67.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $54.00.

About Cheesecake Factory

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated operates and licenses restaurants in the United States and Canada. The company operates bakeries that produce cheesecakes and other baked products for its restaurants, international licensees, third-party bakery customers, external foodservice operators, retailers, and distributors.