CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $81.00, but opened at $82.62. CAVA Group shares last traded at $85.34, with a volume of 719,354 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAVA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. TD Securities decreased their price objective on CAVA Group from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on CAVA Group from $160.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded CAVA Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $110.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of CAVA Group in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of CAVA Group in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, CAVA Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.47.

CAVA Group Trading Down 1.3 %

The company has a market cap of $9.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 181.71 and a beta of 3.58. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $110.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $122.88.

CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by ($0.01). CAVA Group had a return on equity of 9.10% and a net margin of 5.88%. The company had revenue of $227.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $223.34 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that CAVA Group, Inc. will post 0.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at CAVA Group

In related news, CFO Tricia K. Tolivar sold 2,086 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.18, for a total value of $248,609.48. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 235,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,077,854.56. This represents a 0.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Theodoros Xenohristos sold 851 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.18, for a total value of $101,422.18. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 358,995 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,785,024.10. This trade represents a 0.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 29,235 shares of company stock worth $3,514,101. Company insiders own 12.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CAVA Group

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in CAVA Group by 34.8% during the 4th quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 74,542 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,408,000 after buying an additional 19,225 shares during the period. Cim LLC bought a new position in CAVA Group during the 4th quarter worth $1,073,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in CAVA Group during the 4th quarter worth $12,561,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its position in CAVA Group by 84.6% during the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 10,795 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,218,000 after buying an additional 4,946 shares during the period. Finally, Liberty Square Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in CAVA Group during the 4th quarter worth $203,000. Institutional investors own 73.15% of the company’s stock.

About CAVA Group

CAVA Group, Inc owns and operates a chain of restaurants under the CAVA brand in the United States. The company also offers dips, spreads, and dressings through grocery stores. In addition, the company provides online and mobile ordering platforms. Cava Group, Inc was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Washington, the District of Columbia.