Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) General Counsel Alexandros Aldous Sells 35,000 Shares

The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF) General Counsel Alexandros Aldous sold 35,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.97, for a total value of $3,883,950.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 34,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,822,028.74. This represents a 50.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Chefs’ Warehouse Trading Down 2.1%

NASDAQ:CHEF traded down $2.27 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $108.30. 349,342 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 519,242. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.57 and a beta of 1.38. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $99.19 and its 200-day moving average is $79.28. The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. has a 12-month low of $53.20 and a 12-month high of $117.33. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.19. Chefs’ Warehouse had a net margin of 2.09% and a return on equity of 16.95%. The company had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.52 earnings per share. Chefs’ Warehouse’s quarterly revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. will post 2.37 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on CHEF shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Chefs’ Warehouse from $97.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. UBS Group upped their target price on Chefs’ Warehouse from $114.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Chefs’ Warehouse from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. Finally, BTIG Research boosted their price objective on Chefs’ Warehouse from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $107.43.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chefs’ Warehouse

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CHEF. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Chefs’ Warehouse by 12.2% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,930,463 shares of the company’s stock worth $182,656,000 after acquiring an additional 318,942 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Chefs’ Warehouse by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,807,801 shares of the company’s stock worth $175,010,000 after purchasing an additional 58,154 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Chefs’ Warehouse by 2.7% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,129,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,864,000 after purchasing an additional 55,850 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Chefs’ Warehouse by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,428,184 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,019,000 after purchasing an additional 44,323 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp raised its position in Chefs’ Warehouse by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,383,974 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,263,000 after purchasing an additional 5,813 shares in the last quarter. 91.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Chefs’ Warehouse

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.