CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) Raised to “Strong-Buy” at Benchmark

CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) was upgraded by equities researchers at Benchmark to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

CAVA has been the topic of a number of other reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of CAVA Group in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Johnson Rice set a $72.00 price target on shares of CAVA Group in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of CAVA Group from $86.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $70.00 price objective on shares of CAVA Group in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $68.00 target price on shares of CAVA Group in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CAVA Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.50.

CAVA Group Stock Performance

Shares of CAVA opened at $69.95 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $8.11 billion, a PE ratio of 60.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.74 and a beta of 2.41. CAVA Group has a 52-week low of $43.41 and a 52-week high of $144.49. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $61.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $63.61.

CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.13 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $292.24 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $292.88 million. CAVA Group had a net margin of 12.14% and a return on equity of 8.88%. The business’s revenue was up 19.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.15 EPS. Research analysts predict that CAVA Group will post 0.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at CAVA Group

In other CAVA Group news, CFO Tricia K. Tolivar sold 2,404 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.14, for a total value of $149,384.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 231,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,412,378.76. This trade represents a 1.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Kenneth Robert Bertram sold 3,788 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.70, for a total value of $192,051.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,592,950.10. This represents a 6.90% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 42,843 shares of company stock worth $2,764,355. 6.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CAVA Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of CAVA. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in shares of CAVA Group by 105.4% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,228,736 shares of the company’s stock worth $255,451,000 after buying an additional 2,169,553 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in CAVA Group during the third quarter worth $114,098,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in CAVA Group by 118.3% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,953,688 shares of the company’s stock valued at $178,432,000 after purchasing an additional 1,600,630 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of CAVA Group by 28.5% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,634,866 shares of the company’s stock valued at $400,801,000 after buying an additional 1,469,758 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in CAVA Group by 58.8% in the third quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,146,502 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,670,000 after acquiring an additional 794,547 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.15% of the company’s stock.

About CAVA Group

CAVA Group, Inc (NYSE: CAVA) is a leading fast-casual restaurant company specializing in Mediterranean-inspired cuisine. Operating under the CAVA brand, the company offers customizable bowls, pitas and salads built around a variety of proteins, grains, fresh vegetables and house-made spreads. With a focus on high-quality ingredients and made-to-order preparation, CAVA aims to deliver a casual yet elevated dining experience for dine-in, takeout and catering customers.

Founded in 2011 in the Washington, DC metro area by Ike Grigoropoulos, Dimitri Katsanis and Brett Schulman, CAVA has pursued an aggressive growth strategy that included the 2018 acquisition of Zoe’s Kitchen.