Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Acquires New Holdings in The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. $CHEF

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 9,610 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $571,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Chefs’ Warehouse by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,930,463 shares of the company’s stock valued at $182,656,000 after purchasing an additional 318,942 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Chefs’ Warehouse by 2,871.7% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 251,376 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,668,000 after acquiring an additional 242,917 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Chefs’ Warehouse by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,104,826 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,864,000 after acquiring an additional 173,155 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Chefs’ Warehouse by 230.8% during the third quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 85,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,958,000 after purchasing an additional 150,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL purchased a new position in Chefs’ Warehouse during the third quarter valued at approximately $7,142,000. Institutional investors own 91.55% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Chefs’ Warehouse

In related news, CEO Christopher Pappas sold 125,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owned 2,189,453 shares in the company, valued at $170,777,334. The trade was a 5.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Christina Polychroni sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.21, for a total value of $356,445.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 24,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,951,892.82. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 11.10% of the company’s stock.

Chefs’ Warehouse Stock Up 0.3%

NASDAQ CHEF opened at $95.62 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. has a 52 week low of $53.20 and a 52 week high of $97.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.12 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a fifty day moving average of $82.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $70.33.

Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.25 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. will post 2.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $83.00 target price on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from $83.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, BTIG Research raised their target price on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from $82.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.83.

Chefs’ Warehouse 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.