CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Sell”

Wall Street Zen cut shares of CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Saturday morning.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on CAVA. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of CAVA Group from $75.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of CAVA Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of CAVA Group from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Guggenheim assumed coverage on shares of CAVA Group in a report on Thursday, March 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $100.00 target price for the company. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of CAVA Group from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, CAVA Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $88.81.

CAVA Group Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:CAVA opened at $77.02 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $84.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.98. CAVA Group has a 52 week low of $43.41 and a 52 week high of $98.79. The company has a market cap of $8.97 billion, a PE ratio of 142.63, a P/E/G ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 1.90.

CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.01. CAVA Group had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 8.43%. The business had revenue of $274.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $268.04 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.05 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that CAVA Group will post 0.52 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Theodoros Xenohristos sold 9,044 shares of CAVA Group stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.75, for a total value of $721,259.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 327,882 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,148,589.50. The trade was a 2.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Company insiders own 6.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CAVA Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Liontrust Investment Partners LLP acquired a new position in CAVA Group in the third quarter worth $43,189,000. Leibman Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CAVA Group by 162.9% during the fourth quarter. Leibman Financial Services Inc. now owns 67,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,951,000 after acquiring an additional 41,712 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of CAVA Group by 118.3% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,953,688 shares of the company’s stock valued at $178,432,000 after acquiring an additional 1,600,630 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CAVA Group by 57.7% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 222,499 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,441,000 after acquiring an additional 81,393 shares during the period. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of CAVA Group by 20.4% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 103,706 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,265,000 after acquiring an additional 17,600 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.15% of the company’s stock.

CAVA Group Company Profile

CAVA Group, Inc (NYSE: CAVA) is a leading fast-casual restaurant company specializing in Mediterranean-inspired cuisine. Operating under the CAVA brand, the company offers customizable bowls, pitas and salads built around a variety of proteins, grains, fresh vegetables and house-made spreads. With a focus on high-quality ingredients and made-to-order preparation, CAVA aims to deliver a casual yet elevated dining experience for dine-in, takeout and catering customers.

Founded in 2011 in the Washington, DC metro area by Ike Grigoropoulos, Dimitri Katsanis and Brett Schulman, CAVA has pursued an aggressive growth strategy that included the 2018 acquisition of Zoe’s Kitchen.