Defender Capital LLC. Invests $716,000 in CAVA Group, Inc. $CAVA

Defender Capital LLC. acquired a new stake in CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 12,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $716,000. CAVA Group comprises approximately 0.2% of Defender Capital LLC.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors grew its position in CAVA Group by 105.4% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,228,736 shares of the company’s stock valued at $255,451,000 after purchasing an additional 2,169,553 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in CAVA Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $114,098,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its position in CAVA Group by 118.3% during the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,953,688 shares of the company’s stock worth $178,432,000 after buying an additional 1,600,630 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of CAVA Group by 28.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,634,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $400,801,000 after buying an additional 1,469,758 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of CAVA Group by 58.8% during the 3rd quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,146,502 shares of the company’s stock worth $129,670,000 after buying an additional 794,547 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.15% of the company’s stock.

CAVA Group Price Performance

Shares of CAVA opened at $80.30 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $9.35 billion, a PE ratio of 148.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.20 and a beta of 2.16. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $73.25 and a 200-day moving average of $63.56. CAVA Group, Inc. has a one year low of $43.41 and a one year high of $101.50.

CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.01. CAVA Group had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 8.43%. The company had revenue of $274.99 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $268.04 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.05 EPS. CAVA Group’s quarterly revenue was up 20.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that CAVA Group, Inc. will post 0.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Kenneth Robert Bertram sold 1,074 shares of CAVA Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.41, for a total transaction of $72,398.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 50,116 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,378,319.56. The trade was a 2.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Kelly Costanza sold 1,707 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.14, for a total value of $106,072.98. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 119,139 shares in the company, valued at $7,403,297.46. The trade was a 1.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 39,055 shares of company stock valued at $2,572,303. 6.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CAVA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wolfe Research started coverage on CAVA Group in a report on Monday, March 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $93.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen upped their target price on CAVA Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price target on CAVA Group from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Truist Financial raised their price target on CAVA Group from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Johnson Rice set a $72.00 price target on CAVA Group in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.04.

CAVA Group Profile

CAVA Group, Inc (NYSE: CAVA) is a leading fast-casual restaurant company specializing in Mediterranean-inspired cuisine. Operating under the CAVA brand, the company offers customizable bowls, pitas and salads built around a variety of proteins, grains, fresh vegetables and house-made spreads. With a focus on high-quality ingredients and made-to-order preparation, CAVA aims to deliver a casual yet elevated dining experience for dine-in, takeout and catering customers.

Founded in 2011 in the Washington, DC metro area by Ike Grigoropoulos, Dimitri Katsanis and Brett Schulman, CAVA has pursued an aggressive growth strategy that included the 2018 acquisition of Zoe’s Kitchen.