Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) Stock Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE)’s stock price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $54.85 and traded as high as $57.41. Cheesecake Factory shares last traded at $56.99, with a volume of 1,054,338 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CAKE shares. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Cheesecake Factory from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $58.00 price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings raised Cheesecake Factory from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Stephens downgraded Cheesecake Factory from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.81.

Cheesecake Factory Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.56, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.97. The company’s fifty day moving average is $60.50 and its 200 day moving average is $54.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.02. Cheesecake Factory had a net margin of 3.96% and a return on equity of 45.68%. The firm had revenue of $961.56 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $949.03 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.04 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated will post 3.71 EPS for the current year.

Cheesecake Factory Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th were given a $0.30 dividend. This is an increase from Cheesecake Factory’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 4th. Cheesecake Factory’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cheesecake Factory

In related news, EVP Scarlett May sold 5,206 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.95, for a total transaction of $327,717.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 25,715 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,618,759.25. This represents a 16.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Spero G. Alex sold 4,790 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.00, for a total value of $316,140.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 20,582 shares of company stock valued at $1,337,936 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 8.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Woodline Partners LP increased its holdings in Cheesecake Factory by 1,059.3% during the third quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 618,056 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $33,771,000 after buying an additional 564,744 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 24.7% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,057,118 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $112,401,000 after acquiring an additional 407,223 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 214.3% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 512,085 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $25,850,000 after acquiring an additional 349,168 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its position in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 1,583.7% in the 4th quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 287,219 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $14,499,000 after acquiring an additional 270,160 shares during the period. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 54.0% during the 3rd quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 747,046 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $40,819,000 after purchasing an additional 262,081 shares during the last quarter. 94.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Cheesecake Factory

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) is an American restaurant company and distributor renowned for its full-service casual-dining concept and specialty cheesecakes. Headquartered in Calabasas Hills, California, the company operates more than 200 restaurants under The Cheesecake Factory® brand across the United States, Puerto Rico and select international markets. In addition to sit-down dining, Cheesecake Factory franchised locations offer catering and take-out services, while a separate manufacturing arm supplies branded cheesecakes and desserts to supermarkets, hotels and other foodservice operators.

The origins of the brand trace back to a small cheesecake bakery founded in Detroit in the 1940s.