Jersey Mike's (NYSE:JMKE) Raised to Hold at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Jersey Mike’s to “Hold,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy,” with 21 Buy ratings and five Holds and an average price target of $28.35.
• Several major firms recently initiated coverage with bullish ratings and price targets ranging from $26 to $29, suggesting potential upside from the stock’s Tuesday opening price of $22.36.
• Company executives recently purchased shares, but significant insider and shareholder selling—including more than 9.5 million shares sold by insiders over 90 days—along with rising short interest may weigh on investor sentiment.

Jersey Mike's (NYSE:JMKE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Zacks Research to a "hold" rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on JMKE. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of Jersey Mike's in a report on Monday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $27.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Jersey Mike's and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler started coverage on Jersey Mike's in a research note on Monday. They set an "overweight" rating and a $29.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Jersey Mike's in a research note on Monday. They set an "overweight" rating and a $26.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Jersey Mike's in a report on Monday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $27.00 price target on the stock. Twenty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $28.35.

Jersey Mike's Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of JMKE opened at $22.36 on Tuesday. Jersey Mike's has a 12 month low of $20.63 and a 12 month high of $24.99.

Insider Activity at Jersey Mike's

In other Jersey Mike's news, CFO Michele Allen bought 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 31st. The shares were bought at an average price of $23.00 per share, for a total transaction of $69,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 1,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $34,500. This trade represents a -200.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Stacy Peterson bought 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 31st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $23.00 per share, with a total value of $345,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer owned 15,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $345,000. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 31,584 shares of company stock valued at $726,432 and have sold 9,556,184 shares valued at $208,802,620.

Key Stories Impacting Jersey Mike's

Here are the key news stories impacting Jersey Mike's this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Several firms initiated coverage with favorable views. Tigress Financial and Jefferies assigned “buy” ratings with $29 price targets, while Raymond James and RBC issued “moderate buy” ratings with targets of $29 and $28, respectively. These targets imply meaningful upside from recent trading levels. Benzinga analyst coverage reports
• Positive Sentiment: The initial coverage campaign includes major firms such as Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank, Mizuho, Stifel, TD Cowen, Piper Sandler, Baird, BTIG, Bernstein, Guggenheim and Truist. The concentrated analyst attention may improve institutional awareness and support the stock’s valuation. Jersey Mike's analyst coverage reports
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs set a $26 target with a “neutral” rating, and Wells Fargo set a $25 target with an “equal weight” rating. Although less bullish, both targets remain above recent trading levels and establish valuation support. Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts have suggested Jersey Mike’s could eventually challenge Subway as the leading sandwich chain, reinforcing the company’s growth narrative, but the claim is prospective rather than a new operating or financial announcement. Jersey Mike's could overtake Subway article
• Negative Sentiment: Blackstone II Holdings L.P. and Submarine Buyer LLC each reported selling 2,572,560 shares at an average price of $21.85, reducing their positions by 94.71%. The transactions totaled about $56.2 million per filing and could pressure the stock or raise concerns about insider confidence. SEC shareholder sale filing
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest rose 92.2% to 5.57 million shares as of August 14. While the short ratio remains only 1.6 days and 1.4% of shares are short, the increase signals growing bearish positioning.

Jersey Mike's Company Profile

We are Jersey Mike's: A high-growth franchisor of fast casual, submarine-style sandwich restaurants specializing in authentic, hand-crafted, craveable subs. Built over 70 years on one uncompromising belief – that a truly great sub sandwich can change your day and that a truly great brand changes its community – Jersey Mike's is now one of the largest and fastest-growing limited-service restaurant brands based on U.S. systemwide sales and unit growth, with 3,300 stores across all 50 states and two countries – nearly all of which are franchised.

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