BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Loop Capital

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ)‘s stock had its “hold” rating reiterated by Loop Capital in a research report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $80.00 target price on the stock, down from their prior target price of $85.00. Loop Capital’s target price points to a potential upside of 8.47% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on BJ. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $81.00 to $87.00 in a report on Monday, April 8th. Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $70.00 target price (down from $73.00) on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $79.00 to $78.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, BJ’s Wholesale Club currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.40.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Price Performance

BJ stock opened at $73.75 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $9.81 billion, a PE ratio of 19.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.26. BJ’s Wholesale Club has a 12 month low of $60.33 and a 12 month high of $80.42. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $73.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $69.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.05. BJ’s Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 40.84% and a net margin of 2.64%. The firm had revenue of $5.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that BJ’s Wholesale Club will post 3.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at BJ’s Wholesale Club

In other news, Director Christopher J. Baldwin sold 73,062 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.95, for a total transaction of $5,402,934.90. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 173,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,815,091.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 11,000 shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.70, for a total value of $843,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 500,792 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,410,746.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Christopher J. Baldwin sold 73,062 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.95, for a total transaction of $5,402,934.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 173,294 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,815,091.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 98,840 shares of company stock worth $7,408,605 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BJ’s Wholesale Club

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 45.3% in the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 491 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 23.9% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 824 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 5.9% in the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 3,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $245,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 5.0% during the first quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,783 shares of the company’s stock worth $288,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 3.1% in the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 6,939 shares of the company’s stock valued at $505,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. 98.60% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.