Cheesecake Factory’s (CAKE) Equal Weight Rating Reaffirmed at Stephens

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE)‘s stock had its “equal weight” rating reaffirmed by research analysts at Stephens in a research note issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $100.00 price objective on the restaurant operator’s stock. Stephens‘s price target indicates a potential downside of 7.67% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on CAKE. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Cheesecake Factory from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Argus boosted their target price on Cheesecake Factory from $72.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Cheesecake Factory from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $101.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cheesecake Factory presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $95.53.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Performance

CAKE traded down $0.16 on Wednesday, reaching $108.31. The company had a trading volume of 1,086,887 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,408,260. The company’s fifty day moving average is $107.77 and its 200 day moving average is $78.89. The stock has a market cap of $5.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.15 and a beta of 1.04. Cheesecake Factory has a fifty-two week low of $43.07 and a fifty-two week high of $118.63.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The restaurant operator reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1 billion. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.66 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Cheesecake Factory will post 4.71 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Cheesecake Factory

In other Cheesecake Factory news, President David Gordon sold 31,950 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.03, for a total transaction of $3,515,458.50. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 26,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,957,056.25. This trade represents a 54.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Scarlett May sold 7,978 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.66, for a total transaction of $819,021.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,872,621.06. This trade represents a 30.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 213,749 shares of company stock worth $22,301,899 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 8.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new position in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. NFSG Corp grew its holdings in Cheesecake Factory by 115.8% during the 1st quarter. NFSG Corp now owns 682 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in Cheesecake Factory during the 2nd quarter valued at about $57,000. 94.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cheesecake Factory News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Cheesecake Factory this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record Q3 results beat expectations: CAKE reported adjusted EPS of $1.02 versus the $0.95–$0.96 consensus and revenue of approximately $1.03 billion versus $1.00 billion expected. Revenue increased 13.9% year over year, while comparable sales at the namesake Cheesecake Factory restaurants rose 15.2%. Cheesecake Factory Logs Higher Revenue After Double-Digit Growth at Namesake Restaurants
• Positive Sentiment: Traffic and operating momentum are attracting investors: Coverage highlighted a significant traffic increase, earnings growth from $0.66 per share a year ago, and continued margin and business momentum. One Seeking Alpha article upgraded the stock, while Zacks added CAKE to its top-rated momentum list. Cheesecake Factory: Massive Traffic Burst Can’t Be Ignored
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend declared: The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, or $1.20 annualized, yielding roughly 1.1%. Investors of record on November 10 will receive payment on November 24.
• Neutral Sentiment: Political publicity may boost brand visibility: References to Cheesecake Factory in a dispute involving former President Obama and President Trump generated extensive coverage and prompted Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to dine at the chain. The publicity is unlikely to materially change earnings but may increase consumer awareness. Bessent dines at Cheesecake Factory
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and analyst caution remain headwinds: Stephens reiterated an Equal Weight rating with a $100 target, while UBS maintained a Sell rating and an $80 target, citing a stretched valuation. These targets are well below the stock’s recent level and suggest investors may already be pricing in much of the strong operating performance.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling adds risk: Recent filings showed multiple executives selling shares, including substantial sales by the CEO, CFO, and president. The selling may reinforce concerns about profit-taking after CAKE more than doubled this year.

Cheesecake Factory Company Profile

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated is a restaurant company best known for The Cheesecake Factory, a full-service casual dining brand offering an extensive menu of American and international-inspired dishes, along with a broad selection of cheesecakes and other desserts. The company also operates North Italia, an Italian restaurant concept, and owns Fox Restaurant Concepts, which develops and operates additional restaurant brands, including Flower Child and Culinary Dropout.

The company was founded by David Overton, who opened the first Cheesecake Factory restaurant in Beverly Hills, California, in 1978 after his parents began a cheesecake business.