Wells Fargo & Company Issues Positive Forecast for Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) Stock Price

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE - Get Free Report) had its target price hoisted by Wells Fargo & Company from $45.00 to $52.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the restaurant operator's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective would indicate a potential downside of 4.85% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer upgraded Cheesecake Factory from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $65.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Cheesecake Factory from $56.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a report on Thursday. UBS Group upped their price target on Cheesecake Factory from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Cheesecake Factory from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $52.19.

Cheesecake Factory Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ CAKE traded down $0.32 on Thursday, reaching $54.65. 2,232,702 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,442,655. Cheesecake Factory has a fifty-two week low of $33.05 and a fifty-two week high of $57.32. The company has a 50 day moving average of $51.16 and a 200 day moving average of $45.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a PE ratio of 17.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.51.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.13. Cheesecake Factory had a return on equity of 45.89% and a net margin of 4.38%. The business had revenue of $920.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $912.67 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Cheesecake Factory will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheesecake Factory

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CAKE. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $63,114,000. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $56,288,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 166.9% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,076,347 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $51,062,000 after acquiring an additional 673,076 shares in the last quarter. Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $21,827,000. Finally, JCP Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 181.3% during the 4th quarter. JCP Investment Management LLC now owns 667,210 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $31,652,000 after acquiring an additional 430,000 shares in the last quarter. 94.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Cheesecake Factory

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated operates and licenses restaurants in the United States and Canada. The company operates bakeries that produce cheesecakes and other baked products for its restaurants, international licensees, third-party bakery customers, external foodservice operators, retailers, and distributors.