Insider Selling: Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) EVP Sells $819,021.48 in Stock

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) EVP Scarlett May sold 7,978 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,872,621.06. This represents a 30.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Down 0.5%

CAKE stock opened at $105.31 on Thursday. The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated has a one year low of $43.07 and a one year high of $107.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.59. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $80.10 and its 200 day moving average is $67.15. The firm has a market cap of $5.24 billion, a PE ratio of 28.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.00.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The restaurant operator reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.26. Cheesecake Factory had a net margin of 4.61% and a return on equity of 43.97%. The business had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $999.54 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.16 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.

Cheesecake Factory Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 11th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Cheesecake Factory’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on CAKE shares. Northcoast Research lowered Cheesecake Factory from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $66.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $72.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and set a $68.00 target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Cheesecake Factory from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $68.00 in a report on Thursday, May 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $81.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in CAKE. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Cheesecake Factory by 183.6% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 133,921 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $7,072,000 after buying an additional 86,705 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 503,184 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $25,401,000 after purchasing an additional 33,959 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in Cheesecake Factory during the first quarter worth about $1,111,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 140.8% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 26,064 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,316,000 after purchasing an additional 15,242 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Cheesecake Factory by 127.7% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 60,513 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,055,000 after purchasing an additional 33,936 shares during the last quarter. 94.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.