Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) Shares Gap Up Following Earnings Beat

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $42.86, but opened at $46.50. Cheesecake Factory shares last traded at $48.20, with a volume of 415,007 shares traded.

The restaurant operator reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $865.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $866.13 million. Cheesecake Factory had a net margin of 3.32% and a return on equity of 43.62%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.39 EPS. Cheesecake Factory’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America raised their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wedbush boosted their price objective on Cheesecake Factory from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Cheesecake Factory presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.92.

Institutional Trading of Cheesecake Factory

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 2,360.7% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 689 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 661 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 276.4% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,449 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 1,064 shares during the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $67,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the 1st quarter worth approximately $121,000. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Cheesecake Factory in the 1st quarter valued at $202,000. 94.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.17, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.49. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $39.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

Cheesecake Factory Company Profile

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated operates and licenses restaurants in the United States and Canada. The company operates bakeries that produce cheesecakes and other baked products for its restaurants, international licensees, third-party bakery customers, external foodservice operators, retailers, and distributors.