Jefferies Financial Group Boosts BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) Price Target to $105.00

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) had its price target upped by investment analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $95.00 to $105.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 20.32% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Melius Research began coverage on BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $90.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded BJ’s Wholesale Club from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $76.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, BJ’s Wholesale Club has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.94.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Stock Performance

Shares of BJ stock opened at $87.27 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $84.80 and its 200 day moving average is $84.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.04, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.24. BJ’s Wholesale Club has a 12 month low of $63.08 and a 12 month high of $92.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $5.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. BJ’s Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 36.12% and a net margin of 2.62%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.97 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that BJ’s Wholesale Club will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at BJ’s Wholesale Club

In related news, SVP Joseph Mcgrail sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.57, for a total transaction of $83,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,566 shares in the company, valued at $1,133,710.62. This represents a 6.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 11,000 shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.75, for a total value of $921,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 434,792 shares in the company, valued at $36,413,830. This trade represents a 2.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 34,000 shares of company stock worth $2,818,390. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BJ’s Wholesale Club

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 3.3% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,906 shares of the company’s stock valued at $322,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 9.3% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,461 shares of the company’s stock worth $128,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,863 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. OLD National Bancorp IN raised its holdings in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 2.5% during the third quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 5,438 shares of the company’s stock valued at $449,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 5.2% in the third quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 2,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. 98.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About BJ’s Wholesale Club

BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates warehouse clubs on the eastern half of the United States. It provides groceries, general merchandise, gasoline and other ancillary services, coupon books, and promotions. The company sells its products through the websites BJs.com, BerkleyJensen.com, and Wellsleyfarms.com, as well as the mobile app.