Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $42.86, but opened at $46.50. Cheesecake Factory shares last traded at $48.20, with a volume of 415,007 shares trading hands.

The restaurant operator reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.11. Cheesecake Factory had a net margin of 3.32% and a return on equity of 43.62%. The business had revenue of $865.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $866.13 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.39 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on CAKE shares. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price target on shares of Cheesecake Factory from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $44.17.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 23,110 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $937,000 after buying an additional 532 shares during the period. Oak Harvest Investment Services acquired a new stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $345,000. New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 5.5% in the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 77,660 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $3,149,000 after buying an additional 4,053 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Cheesecake Factory in the third quarter worth approximately $227,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC lifted its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 11.4% during the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 11,343 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $460,000 after buying an additional 1,158 shares in the last quarter. 94.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cheesecake Factory Stock Up 9.2 %

The firm has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a PE ratio of 19.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $39.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.30.

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.