StockNews.com Lowers BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) to Hold

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI – Get Rating) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on BJRI. Oppenheimer increased their price target on BJ’s Restaurants from $34.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 17th. Stephens increased their price target on BJ’s Restaurants from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 17th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $38.00 price target on shares of BJ’s Restaurants in a research note on Monday, April 17th. Citigroup lowered their target price on BJ’s Restaurants from $35.00 to $33.00 in a research report on Monday, April 24th. Finally, TheStreet raised BJ’s Restaurants from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $34.00.

BJ’s Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of BJRI stock traded down $0.63 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $30.99. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 197,983 shares, compared to its average volume of 318,536. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $29.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $30.55. The company has a market capitalization of $728.27 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 119.20, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 1.94. BJ’s Restaurants has a fifty-two week low of $20.15 and a fifty-two week high of $36.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The restaurant operator reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04 by $0.11. BJ’s Restaurants had a return on equity of 1.22% and a net margin of 0.46%. The company had revenue of $341.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $331.83 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.06 EPS. BJ’s Restaurants’s revenue was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that BJ’s Restaurants will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at BJ’s Restaurants

In other news, insider Brian S. Krakower sold 1,170 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.46, for a total value of $37,978.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,959 shares in the company, valued at approximately $160,969.14. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Brian S. Krakower sold 950 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.08, for a total value of $29,526.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $190,489.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Brian S. Krakower sold 1,170 shares of BJ’s Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.46, for a total value of $37,978.20. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,959 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $160,969.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BJ’s Restaurants

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 94.7% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,023 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 984 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 29.6% during the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,536 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 21.5% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,877 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 25.8% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 3,005 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 616 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.39% of the company’s stock.

About BJ’s Restaurants

(Get Rating)

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc engages in the ownership and operation of casual dining restaurants. The firm operates BJ’s Restaurant and Brewery, BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse, BJ’s Pizza and Grill or BJ’s Grill. It offers pizzas, appetizers, specialty salads, soups, pastas, sandwiches, entrées, desserts, and proprietary craft beers.