Matthew Eliot Clark Sells 29,000 Shares of The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) Stock

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE - Get Free Report) CFO Matthew Eliot Clark sold 29,000 shares of Cheesecake Factory stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.56, for a total value of $1,553,240.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 39,856 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,134,687.36. This represents a 42.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Cheesecake Factory Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ CAKE traded down $1.04 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $50.25. The company had a trading volume of 2,292,554 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,656,392. The company's fifty day moving average price is $51.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.43. The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated has a 12 month low of $33.05 and a 12 month high of $57.32. The stock has a market cap of $2.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.70, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ:CAKE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $920.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $912.67 million. As a group, research analysts expect that The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current year.

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Cheesecake Factory Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. Cheesecake Factory's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on CAKE. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Cheesecake Factory from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Raymond James lifted their target price on Cheesecake Factory from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Cheesecake Factory from $45.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Cheesecake Factory in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Wedbush boosted their price target on Cheesecake Factory from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Four 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, Cheesecake Factory presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $52.19.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Cheesecake Factory during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 108.1% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 616 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Cheesecake Factory during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Cheesecake Factory by 1,149.5% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,312 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 1,207 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of Cheesecake Factory by 46.9% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,321 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 741 shares during 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.