Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Sunday.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Zacks Research raised shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $83.00 target price on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse in a report on Thursday, April 30th. BTIG Research lifted their price target on Chefs’ Warehouse from $82.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Chefs’ Warehouse from $83.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $83.83.

Chefs’ Warehouse Stock Performance

Shares of CHEF stock opened at $95.40 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.18. The company has a market capitalization of $3.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.00 and a beta of 1.44. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $77.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.09. Chefs’ Warehouse has a 52 week low of $53.20 and a 52 week high of $96.38.

Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Chefs’ Warehouse had a net margin of 1.87% and a return on equity of 15.54%. The business’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.25 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Chefs’ Warehouse will post 2.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chefs’ Warehouse

In other Chefs’ Warehouse news, insider Christina Polychroni sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.21, for a total value of $356,445.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 24,642 shares in the company, valued at $1,951,892.82. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Christopher Pappas sold 125,000 shares of Chefs’ Warehouse stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.00, for a total transaction of $9,750,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,189,453 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $170,777,334. This trade represents a 5.40% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 11.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chefs’ Warehouse

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CHEF. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in Chefs’ Warehouse by 229.5% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 458 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in Chefs’ Warehouse by 515.3% during the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 523 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 438 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Chefs’ Warehouse in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Chefs’ Warehouse in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in Chefs’ Warehouse by 30.7% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.55% of the company’s stock.

Chefs’ Warehouse Company Profile

Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc is a specialty food distributor that supplies a broad range of high‐end ingredients and culinary products to professional chefs, restaurants, hotels, and other foodservice operators. Headquartered in Maspeth, New York, the company sources its portfolio from local artisans, boutique producers and leading global suppliers. Its core offerings include fresh and frozen proteins, specialty cuts of meat and seafood, handcrafted cheeses and charcuterie, seasonal produce, value‐added preparations, pantry staples and premium desserts and beverages.

The company operates a network of distribution centers strategically located in major metropolitan markets across North America.