Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) Stock Price Down 6.9% – Here’s What Happened

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) shares dropped 6.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $98.93 and last traded at $97.9050. 383,534 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 1,412,187 shares. The stock had previously closed at $105.17.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAKE has been the subject of a number of research reports. Argus raised their price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $72.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup upped their price target on Cheesecake Factory from $76.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Stephens reissued a “positive” rating on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Cheesecake Factory from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.47.

Cheesecake Factory Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $100.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $76.77. The stock has a market cap of $4.81 billion, a PE ratio of 26.12, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.01.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The restaurant operator reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.26. Cheesecake Factory had a return on equity of 43.97% and a net margin of 4.61%.The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $999.54 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.16 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated will post 4.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheesecake Factory Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 11th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Cheesecake Factory’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, President David Gordon sold 31,950 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the president directly owned 26,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,957,056.25. This represents a 54.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Janice L. Meyer sold 1,958 shares of Cheesecake Factory stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.36, for a total transaction of $214,126.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 21,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,324,009.36. This represents a 8.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 213,749 shares of company stock valued at $22,301,899. Corporate insiders own 8.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,242,143 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $68,008,000 after purchasing an additional 29,037 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 503,184 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $25,401,000 after purchasing an additional 33,959 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Cheesecake Factory during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,020,000. Bamco Inc. NY purchased a new position in Cheesecake Factory during the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,793,000. Finally, PDT Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the second quarter valued at about $13,743,000. 94.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Cheesecake Factory

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ: CAKE) operates full-service casual dining restaurants in the United States. Its flagship Cheesecake Factory restaurants offer an extensive menu of made-to-order dishes spanning American and international cuisines, along with a broad selection of cheesecakes and other desserts.

The company also operates North Italia, an Italian restaurant concept, and restaurants developed through Fox Restaurant Concepts. In addition, its bakery division produces cheesecakes and other baked goods for the company’s restaurants, retailers, and other foodservice customers.

Founded in 1978 by David Overton, The Cheesecake Factory began as a bakery business before opening its first restaurant in Beverly Hills, California, in 1978.