StockNews.com Initiates Coverage on Chuy’s (NASDAQ:CHUY)

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Chuy’s (NASDAQ:CHUY) in a research report report published on Friday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

CHUY has been the subject of a number of other reports. Benchmark cut Chuy’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $37.50 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Chuy’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $38.00 to $24.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and set a $37.50 price objective (down from $38.00) on shares of Chuy’s in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $37.50 price objective on shares of Chuy’s in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.25.

Chuy’s Stock Performance

Shares of CHUY stock opened at $37.48 on Friday. Chuy’s has a twelve month low of $22.52 and a twelve month high of $39.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $645.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.18 and a beta of 1.77. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.15.

Chuy’s (NASDAQ:CHUY) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 9th. The restaurant operator reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.01. Chuy’s had a return on equity of 13.23% and a net margin of 5.84%. The business had revenue of $119.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $120.46 million. Research analysts predict that Chuy’s will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chuy’s

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Creative Planning raised its stake in Chuy’s by 51.7% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 14,602 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $546,000 after buying an additional 4,979 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in Chuy’s by 92.4% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 9,865 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $369,000 after buying an additional 4,737 shares during the last quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Chuy’s by 257.8% in the second quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 4,129 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 2,975 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Chuy’s in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Chuy’s by 52.6% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 256,375 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $6,645,000 after purchasing an additional 88,406 shares during the period. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Chuy’s

Chuy’s Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates full-service restaurants under the Chuy’s name in the United States. The company was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.