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

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE)’s stock price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $78.97 and traded as high as $105.92. Cheesecake Factory shares last traded at $104.49, with a volume of 984,988 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on CAKE. Morgan Stanley upgraded Cheesecake Factory from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $50.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Cheesecake Factory from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $76.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $72.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $85.47.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The business has a 50-day moving average of $103.66 and a 200-day moving average of $78.97. The company has a market capitalization of $5.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.01.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The restaurant operator reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.26. Cheesecake Factory had a net margin of 4.61% and a return on equity of 43.97%. The business had revenue of $1.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $999.54 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.16 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated will post 4.53 EPS for the current year.

Cheesecake Factory Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 11th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 11th. Cheesecake Factory’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cheesecake Factory news, Director Edie A. Ames sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.95, for a total transaction of $320,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,069,500. The trade was a 23.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Scarlett May sold 7,978 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.66, for a total value of $819,021.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 18,241 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,872,621.06. This represents a 30.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 213,749 shares of company stock worth $22,301,899 over the last three months. 8.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Money Concepts Capital Corp increased its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 3.8% in the first quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 5,802 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 8,993 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $454,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the period. NFSG Corp grew its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 115.8% in the first quarter. NFSG Corp now owns 682 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC grew its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 4,672 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 0.4% in the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 93,700 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $5,130,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.48% of the company’s stock.

Cheesecake Factory Company Profile

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ: CAKE) operates full-service casual dining restaurants in the United States. Its flagship Cheesecake Factory restaurants offer an extensive menu of made-to-order dishes spanning American and international cuisines, along with a broad selection of cheesecakes and other desserts.

The company also operates North Italia, an Italian restaurant concept, and restaurants developed through Fox Restaurant Concepts. In addition, its bakery division produces cheesecakes and other baked goods for the company’s restaurants, retailers, and other foodservice customers.

Founded in 1978 by David Overton, The Cheesecake Factory began as a bakery business before opening its first restaurant in Beverly Hills, California, in 1978.