First Trust Advisors LP Purchases 133,262 Shares of The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF)

First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHEF) by 892.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 148,190 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 133,262 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.37% of Chefs’ Warehouse worth $7,309,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Chefs’ Warehouse by 24.6% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,202 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Chefs’ Warehouse by 303.4% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 593 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank grew its holdings in Chefs’ Warehouse by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 70,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,477,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased its position in Chefs’ Warehouse by 67.1% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 843 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Chefs’ Warehouse by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 40,853 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,015,000 after buying an additional 1,825 shares during the period. 91.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CHEF shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from $60.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Lake Street Capital upped their target price on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from $60.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price target on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse in a report on Monday, March 17th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Chefs’ Warehouse from $58.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Chefs’ Warehouse from $60.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.60.

Chefs’ Warehouse Price Performance

Chefs’ Warehouse stock opened at $53.28 on Wednesday. The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. has a 52-week low of $32.83 and a 52-week high of $66.51. The company has a market cap of $2.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.67 and a beta of 1.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $54.79 and its 200 day moving average is $50.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Chefs’ Warehouse (NASDAQ:CHEF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Chefs’ Warehouse had a net margin of 1.46% and a return on equity of 12.90%. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Chefs’ Warehouse, Inc. will post 1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chefs’ Warehouse Profile

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.