TimesSquare Capital Management LLC Boosts Holdings in The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. $CHEF

Key Points

• TimesSquare Capital Management increased its stake in Chefs' Warehouse by 4.6% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 548,853 shares worth about $34.2 million.
• The company reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $0.40 versus $0.23 expected and revenue of $1.06 billion versus $1.01 billion expected, while revenue rose 11.4% year over year.
• Analysts remain generally positive on CHEF, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $80.83, though some insider selling and a mixed rating update were also noted.

TimesSquare Capital Management LLC boosted its position in The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF - Free Report) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 548,853 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 24,215 shares during the period. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC owned approximately 1.35% of Chefs' Warehouse worth $34,210,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CHEF. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Chefs' Warehouse during the 1st quarter worth $352,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Chefs' Warehouse by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 21,152 shares of the company's stock worth $1,152,000 after purchasing an additional 1,247 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in shares of Chefs' Warehouse by 50.2% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 130,382 shares of the company's stock worth $7,101,000 after purchasing an additional 43,593 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Chefs' Warehouse during the 1st quarter worth $98,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Chefs' Warehouse during the 2nd quarter worth $243,000. 91.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chefs' Warehouse

In related news, CEO Christopher Pappas sold 125,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,189,453 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $170,777,334. The trade was a 5.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christina Polychroni sold 3,317 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.45, for a total transaction of $217,097.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,141 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,972,728.45. The trade was a 9.91% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 264,309 shares of company stock valued at $18,810,197 over the last 90 days. 11.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on CHEF shares. BTIG Research boosted their target price on shares of Chefs' Warehouse from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Chefs' Warehouse from $83.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Chefs' Warehouse from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $83.00 price objective on shares of Chefs' Warehouse in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Chefs' Warehouse from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $80.83.

Chefs' Warehouse Price Performance

Chefs' Warehouse stock opened at $79.75 on Tuesday. The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. has a 52 week low of $53.20 and a 52 week high of $82.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $66.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $64.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.25 billion, a PE ratio of 44.31 and a beta of 1.47.

Chefs' Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.40 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 previous year, the firm earned $0.25 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. will post 2.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.

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