Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) Stock Price Expected to Rise, BMO Capital Markets Analyst Says

Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) had its price objective upped by stock analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $60.00 to $73.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets’ target price suggests a potential upside of 16.97% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on CHEF. Benchmark boosted their price objective on Chefs’ Warehouse from $55.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Lake Street Capital boosted their price target on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from $48.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from $58.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from $60.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Chefs’ Warehouse has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.00.

Chefs’ Warehouse Price Performance

CHEF stock traded up $2.80 during trading on Thursday, hitting $62.41. The company had a trading volume of 385,862 shares, compared to its average volume of 434,590. The business has a 50 day moving average of $51.28 and a 200 day moving average of $44.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.75 and a beta of 2.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. Chefs’ Warehouse has a fifty-two week low of $31.96 and a fifty-two week high of $63.39.

Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Chefs’ Warehouse had a net margin of 1.28% and a return on equity of 12.67%. As a group, research analysts predict that Chefs’ Warehouse will post 1.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, General Counsel Alexandros Aldous sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $225,000.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 114,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,145,390. The trade was a 4.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO James Leddy sold 4,000 shares of Chefs’ Warehouse stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.85, for a total value of $195,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 145,589 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,112,022.65. This trade represents a 2.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 11.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Chefs’ Warehouse by 193.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,445,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $120,618,000 after acquiring an additional 1,611,240 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Chefs’ Warehouse by 118.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 512,830 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,293,000 after purchasing an additional 278,295 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Chefs’ Warehouse by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 502,415 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,106,000 after purchasing an additional 6,070 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Chefs’ Warehouse by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 464,391 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,904,000 after purchasing an additional 9,299 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA acquired a new stake in shares of Chefs’ Warehouse during the 4th quarter valued at about $20,374,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.55% of the company’s stock.

About Chefs’ Warehouse

The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes specialty food and center-of-the-plate products in the United States, the Middle East, and Canada. The company’s product portfolio includes specialty food products, such as artisan charcuterie, specialty cheeses, unique oils and vinegars, truffles, caviar, chocolate, and pastry products; and center-of-the-plate products consisting of custom cut beef, seafood, and hormone-free poultry, as well as broadline food products comprising cooking oils, butter, eggs, milk, and flour.