Insider Selling: Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) EVP Sells $327,717.70 in Stock

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) EVP Scarlett May sold 5,206 shares of Cheesecake Factory stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.95, for a total transaction of $327,717.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 25,715 shares in the company, valued at $1,618,759.25. This trade represents a 16.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Up 1.7%

CAKE stock opened at $57.57 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated has a 52-week low of $42.69 and a 52-week high of $69.70. The company has a 50-day moving average of $60.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $55.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.97.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.02. Cheesecake Factory had a return on equity of 45.68% and a net margin of 3.96%.The company had revenue of $961.56 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $949.03 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.04 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated will post 3.71 EPS for the current year.

Cheesecake Factory Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from Cheesecake Factory’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Cheesecake Factory’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Stephens cut Cheesecake Factory from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Robert W. Baird set a $62.00 target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $58.00 price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Cheesecake Factory has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.81.

Institutional Trading of Cheesecake Factory

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its position in Cheesecake Factory by 226.5% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 604 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 39.2% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 632 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Cheesecake Factory by 661.7% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 716 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 622 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in Cheesecake Factory by 973.2% in the 4th quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 880 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 798 shares during the period. Finally, Arax Advisory Partners acquired a new position in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. 94.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cheesecake Factory Company Profile

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) is an American restaurant company and distributor renowned for its full-service casual-dining concept and specialty cheesecakes. Headquartered in Calabasas Hills, California, the company operates more than 200 restaurants under The Cheesecake Factory® brand across the United States, Puerto Rico and select international markets. In addition to sit-down dining, Cheesecake Factory franchised locations offer catering and take-out services, while a separate manufacturing arm supplies branded cheesecakes and desserts to supermarkets, hotels and other foodservice operators.

The origins of the brand trace back to a small cheesecake bakery founded in Detroit in the 1940s.