Cheesecake Factory’s (CAKE) Equal Weight Rating Reiterated at Stephens

Stephens reissued their equal weight rating on shares of Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) in a research note released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $100.00 target price on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Zacks Research raised Cheesecake Factory from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Cheesecake Factory from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $75.00 to $88.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $66.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $95.47.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Down 0.4%

CAKE opened at $112.64 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $108.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $79.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. The company has a market cap of $5.61 billion, a PE ratio of 26.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.04. Cheesecake Factory has a 52 week low of $43.07 and a 52 week high of $118.63.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The restaurant operator reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.06. Cheesecake Factory had a return on equity of 46.95% and a net margin of 5.20%. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.66 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Cheesecake Factory will post 4.70 EPS for the current year.

Cheesecake Factory Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 10th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. Cheesecake Factory’s payout ratio is presently 28.44%.

Insider Activity at Cheesecake Factory

In other news, EVP Scarlett May sold 2,939 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.12, for a total transaction of $335,398.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 15,302 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,746,264.24. This represents a 16.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Matthew Clark sold 23,832 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.31, for a total transaction of $2,700,403.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 45,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,111,300.79. This represents a 34.57% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 158,372 shares of company stock worth $17,152,291. 8.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CAKE. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,020,000. Bamco Inc. NY acquired a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,793,000. PDT Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $13,743,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. purchased a new position in Cheesecake Factory in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $13,792,000. Finally, Palisade Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Cheesecake Factory in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $10,014,000. 94.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Cheesecake Factory

Here are the key news stories impacting Cheesecake Factory this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter results showed solid momentum: total revenue exceeded $1.033 billion, and flagship restaurant guest traffic rose 9.5%. The company also surpassed consensus estimates for both revenue and earnings, suggesting continued customer demand. Cheesecake Factory: 3 Key Takeaways for Long-Term Investors
• Positive Sentiment: Freedom Capital upgraded CAKE from “hold” to “strong-buy,” providing a bullish counterpoint to the day’s more cautious research. Freedom Capital analyst action
• Positive Sentiment: The company announced an opening date for a new location at West County Mall, indicating continued unit expansion, although the financial impact is likely limited in the near term. Cheesecake Factory sets opening date
• Neutral Sentiment: Barack Obama’s repeated Cheesecake Factory references have generated substantial media attention and may increase brand visibility, but the political dispute does not appear to change the company’s earnings outlook or operations. Seth Meyers praises Obama
• Neutral Sentiment: Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating, signaling that the firm sees limited near-term outperformance despite CAKE’s strong operating results. Stephens reaffirms Equal Weight rating
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded CAKE from “strong-buy” to “hold.” The stock also crossed below its 50-day moving average following the downgrade, reinforcing near-term technical and valuation concerns. Cheesecake Factory stock crosses below 50-day moving average

About Cheesecake Factory

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated is a restaurant company best known for The Cheesecake Factory, a full-service casual dining brand offering an extensive menu of American and international-inspired dishes, along with a broad selection of cheesecakes and other desserts. The company also operates North Italia, an Italian restaurant concept, and owns Fox Restaurant Concepts, which develops and operates additional restaurant brands, including Flower Child and Culinary Dropout.

The company was founded by David Overton, who opened the first Cheesecake Factory restaurant in Beverly Hills, California, in 1978 after his parents began a cheesecake business.