Chefs' Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Chefs’ Warehouse shares reached a new 52-week high, trading as high as $118.51 and last changing hands at $117.67, up from a prior close of $112.56.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: the stock has a consensus “Buy” rating, with price targets raised by several firms to between $125 and $131. The company also exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.78 EPS versus $0.59 expected and revenue of $1.17 billion.
• Despite strong institutional ownership—91.55% of shares—company insiders sold 137,752 shares worth approximately $15.2 million over the past 90 days.

The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday. The stock traded as high as $118.51 and last traded at $117.67, with a volume of 399170 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $112.56.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on CHEF. Benchmark raised their price target on Chefs' Warehouse from $106.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Chefs' Warehouse from $114.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Chefs' Warehouse from $97.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Chefs' Warehouse from $123.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Chefs' Warehouse from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $115.67.

Chefs' Warehouse Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market cap of $4.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.90 and a beta of 1.44. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $89.71.

Chefs' Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.12 billion. Chefs' Warehouse had a net margin of 2.09% and a return on equity of 16.95%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc. will post 2.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Christina Polychroni sold 2,752 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.00, for a total transaction of $308,224.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 22,014 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,465,568. This represents a 11.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, General Counsel Alexandros Aldous sold 35,000 shares of Chefs' Warehouse stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.97, for a total value of $3,883,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 34,442 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,822,028.74. This trade represents a 50.40% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 137,752 shares of company stock worth $15,203,174 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 11.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Chefs' Warehouse

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Chefs' Warehouse by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 977,464 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,110,000 after acquiring an additional 15,311 shares during the period. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Chefs' Warehouse in the second quarter valued at $37,619,000. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of Chefs' Warehouse by 23.9% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 332,391 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,759,000 after purchasing an additional 64,090 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of Chefs' Warehouse during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,010,000. Finally, Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Chefs' Warehouse by 20.9% during the 1st quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 273,246 shares of the company's stock worth $16,244,000 after purchasing an additional 47,243 shares during the period. 91.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Chefs' Warehouse

The Chefs' Warehouse, Inc is a specialty food distributor that supplies professional chefs, restaurants, hotels, culinary institutions, specialty retailers and other foodservice customers. The company focuses on products that are often difficult to source through broadline distributors, including specialty and center-of-the-plate items.

Its product offerings include fresh produce, seafood, meat and poultry, dairy, imported and domestic cheeses, charcuterie, specialty grocery products, dry goods, frozen foods, and culinary supplies.

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