Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Shares of The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF) reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $117.33 and last traded at $111.30, with a volume of 478725 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $115.35.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on CHEF. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from $114.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from $97.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $107.43.

Chefs’ Warehouse Stock Down 1.3%

The stock has a market cap of $4.43 billion, a PE ratio of 51.69 and a beta of 1.39. The business has a 50 day moving average of $94.10 and a 200-day moving average of $76.70. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07.

Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.12 billion. Chefs’ Warehouse had a return on equity of 16.95% and a net margin of 2.09%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. will post 2.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Chefs’ Warehouse

In related news, insider Christina Polychroni sold 4,500 shares of the company’s 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 represents a 15.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 11.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Chefs’ Warehouse by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 9,536 shares of the company’s stock valued at $594,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in Chefs’ Warehouse by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 18,437 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,149,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Chefs’ Warehouse by 30.7% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Chefs’ Warehouse by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,133 shares of the company’s stock valued at $133,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Chefs’ Warehouse by 4.9% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 4,341 shares of the company’s stock valued at $277,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. 91.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.