The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) CFO Matthew Eliot Clark Sells 29,000 Shares

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) CFO Matthew Eliot Clark sold 29,000 shares of Cheesecake Factory stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.56, for a total value of $1,553,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 39,856 shares in the company, valued at $2,134,687.36. This trade represents a 42.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Cheesecake Factory Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ CAKE traded up $1.56 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $54.03. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,549,506 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,640,132. The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated has a 12-month low of $33.05 and a 12-month high of $57.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm has a market cap of $2.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.51. The business’s 50 day moving average is $51.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $45.97.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.13. Cheesecake Factory had a return on equity of 45.89% and a net margin of 4.38%. The company had revenue of $920.96 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $912.67 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated will post 3.71 EPS for the current year.

Cheesecake Factory Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.00%. Cheesecake Factory’s payout ratio is 33.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAKE has been the topic of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $45.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Cheesecake Factory from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 28th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Raymond James upped their target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.19.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAKE. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Cheesecake Factory by 108.1% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 616 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Cheesecake Factory during the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 1,149.5% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 1,207 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 46.9% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,321 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $110,000 after buying an additional 741 shares in the last quarter. 94.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cheesecake Factory Company Profile

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.