CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) Shares Climb 4.5% – Here’s What Happened

CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA)’s stock price shot up 4.5% on Friday. The stock traded as high as $58.54 and last traded at $57.9140. 1,385,703 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 59% from the average session volume of 3,364,762 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.40.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of CAVA Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $86.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Freedom Capital raised shares of CAVA Group to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of CAVA Group from $85.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of CAVA Group from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research boosted their price objective on shares of CAVA Group from $79.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.88.

CAVA Group Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $59.33 and a 200 day moving average of $71.99. The stock has a market cap of $6.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 103.69, a P/E/G ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 1.80.

CAVA Group (NYSE:CAVA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.01. CAVA Group had a return on equity of 8.28% and a net margin of 4.82%. The firm had revenue of $368.44 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $360.09 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.16 earnings per share. CAVA Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that CAVA Group, Inc. will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CAVA Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Friday, September 18th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 1.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at CAVA Group

In other CAVA Group news, insider Douglas Thompson bought 6,500 shares of CAVA Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 31st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $66.52 per share, with a total value of $432,380.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 19,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,288,558.92. This trade represents a 50.50% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 6.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CAVA Group

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in CAVA Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $757,013,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of CAVA Group by 76.9% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,605,508 shares of the company’s stock valued at $126,000,000 after buying an additional 697,699 shares during the period. Primecap Management Co. CA purchased a new stake in shares of CAVA Group in the second quarter worth about $92,956,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CAVA Group in the second quarter worth about $89,861,000. Finally, Prime Capital Management Co Ltd acquired a new stake in CAVA Group during the second quarter worth about $80,962,000. 73.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About CAVA Group

CAVA Group, Inc is a fast-casual restaurant company focused on Mediterranean-inspired food and hospitality. Its restaurants offer customizable meals such as grain bowls, salads, pitas and dips, with ingredients and flavors influenced by the cuisines of the Mediterranean region. The company also provides digital ordering, delivery and catering services through its restaurant platform.

CAVA began as a Washington, DC-area restaurant concept and has expanded its operations across the United States.