Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $74.00 price target on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $71.88.

Chefs’ Warehouse Stock Performance

NASDAQ CHEF opened at $60.26 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $2.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.45 and a beta of 1.30. Chefs’ Warehouse has a 52-week low of $45.00 and a 52-week high of $68.94. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $59.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $61.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23.

Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.07. Chefs’ Warehouse had a return on equity of 14.11% and a net margin of 1.85%.The company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $986.36 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.36 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Chefs’ Warehouse will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Chefs’ Warehouse

In related news, CFO James Leddy sold 22,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.11, for a total transaction of $1,366,420.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 125,892 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,819,152.12. The trade was a 14.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 11.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chefs’ Warehouse

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Chefs’ Warehouse by 389.5% during the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,073,339 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,914,000 after acquiring an additional 1,649,811 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Chefs’ Warehouse during the first quarter worth $26,263,000. Select Equity Group L.P. boosted its position in Chefs’ Warehouse by 524.7% during the first quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 452,843 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,662,000 after purchasing an additional 380,356 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in Chefs’ Warehouse by 362.6% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 429,124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,382,000 after purchasing an additional 336,357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Chefs’ Warehouse by 9.2% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,669,580 shares of the company’s stock valued at $145,385,000 after purchasing an additional 223,954 shares during the last quarter. 91.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Chefs’ Warehouse

The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes specialty food and center-of-the-plate products in the United States, the Middle East, and Canada. The company’s product portfolio includes specialty food products, such as artisan charcuterie, specialty cheeses, unique oils and vinegars, truffles, caviar, chocolate, and pastry products; and center-of-the-plate products consisting of custom cut beef, seafood, and hormone-free poultry, as well as broadline food products comprising cooking oils, butter, eggs, milk, and flour.