AdvisorShares Investments LLC Sells 17,568 Shares of BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. $BJRI

AdvisorShares Investments LLC lessened its stake in shares of BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI) by 90.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,832 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 17,568 shares during the period. AdvisorShares Investments LLC’s holdings in BJ’s Restaurants were worth $72,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,514,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 23.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,362,763 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $102,665,000 after purchasing an additional 640,648 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,662,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 886,918 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $27,078,000 after purchasing an additional 62,321 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC boosted its holdings in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 50.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC now owns 411,750 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $12,571,000 after purchasing an additional 137,283 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on BJRI shares. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $42.00 to $38.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $44.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of BJ’s Restaurants in a research report on Friday, March 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $42.00.

Insider Transactions at BJ’s Restaurants

In related news, EVP Brian S. Krakower sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.03, for a total value of $91,078.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,062 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $177,321.86. This represents a 33.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director C Bradford Richmond acquired 1,000 shares of BJ’s Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $34.05 per share, for a total transaction of $34,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,700 shares in the company, valued at $636,735. This trade represents a 5.65% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders purchased a total of 3,200 shares of company stock worth $110,670 over the last three months. 4.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

BJ’s Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BJRI opened at $47.05 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $39.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $988.99 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.35. BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.46 and a 12-month high of $47.99.

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The restaurant operator reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.61 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $358.12 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $356.97 million. BJ’s Restaurants had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 13.48%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.59 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About BJ’s Restaurants

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc is a publicly traded casual dining chain known for its deep‐dish pizzas, California‐style thin crust offerings and in‐house craft beer selections. Operating under the BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse brand, the company combines a microbrewery concept with full‐service dining, offering an extensive menu that includes appetizers, salads, pasta dishes, sandwiches and the signature Pizookie dessert.

Founded in 1978 in Orange County, California, BJ’s Restaurants began as BJ’s Chicago Pizzeria, bringing a Chicago‐style pizza experience to the West Coast.