Morgan Stanley Raises BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) Price Target to $98.00

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) had its price target upped by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $90.00 to $98.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 5.95% from the stock’s previous close.

BJ has been the subject of several other reports. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on 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 upped their target price on 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. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $76.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BJ’s Wholesale Club currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $90.88.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Stock Up 7.9 %

Shares of BJ opened at $92.50 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $85.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.20. BJ’s Wholesale Club has a 12 month low of $63.73 and a 12 month high of $94.67. The company has a market capitalization of $12.26 billion, a PE ratio of 23.36, a PEG ratio of 4.19 and a beta of 0.24. 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 earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $5.21 billion for 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 revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.97 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that BJ’s Wholesale Club will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.47, for a total transaction of $940,170.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 423,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,221,502.24. This trade represents a 2.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Joseph Mcgrail sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.57, for a total value of $83,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 13,566 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,133,710.62. This trade represents a 6.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 34,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,818,390. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BJ’s Wholesale Club

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake 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 buying an additional 123 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,461 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 7.4% during the second 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 last quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN boosted its position in 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 worth $449,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.60% of the company’s stock.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Company Profile

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.