JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for JBS (NYSE:JBS) Stock Price

Key Points

• JPMorgan raised its price target for JBS to $18.00 from $17.50 and maintained an “overweight” rating, implying roughly 39% upside from the reported $12.91 share price.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive: JBS has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $18.50, though some firms recently downgraded the stock to “hold” or “sell.”
• JBS reported quarterly revenue of $23.9 billion, up 13.8% year over year, but earnings per share of $0.20 fell short of the $0.32 consensus estimate; the company’s CFO also sold 183,501 shares.

JBS (NYSE:JBS - Get Free Report) had its price objective lifted by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $17.50 to $18.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target would indicate a potential upside of 39.37% from the company's current price.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Barclays dropped their target price on JBS from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen lowered JBS from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on JBS from $17.00 to $17.50 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Weiss Ratings raised JBS from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded JBS from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, JBS has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $18.50.

JBS Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of JBS stock traded up $0.17 on Friday, hitting $12.91. The stock had a trading volume of 3,995,027 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,736,760. The stock's 50 day moving average is $12.84 and its 200-day moving average is $13.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of -1.44. JBS has a 52-week low of $10.61 and a 52-week high of $18.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.53.

JBS (NYSE:JBS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.12). JBS had a return on equity of 12.00% and a net margin of 1.22%.The firm had revenue of $23.90 billion for the quarter. The company's quarterly revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that JBS will post 1.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other JBS news, CFO Guilherme Cavalcanti sold 183,501 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.85, for a total transaction of $2,541,488.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On JBS

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wedmont Private Capital bought a new position in shares of JBS in the 3rd quarter worth about $593,000. Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in shares of JBS by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 45,199 shares of the company's stock valued at $536,000 after buying an additional 840 shares during the last quarter. IPG Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in JBS by 71.3% during the second quarter. IPG Investment Advisors LLC now owns 206,900 shares of the company's stock worth $2,452,000 after acquiring an additional 86,100 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new stake in JBS during the second quarter worth about $1,451,000. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in JBS in the second quarter worth about $609,000.

About JBS

JBS SA is a Brazil-based food company focused on the processing and production of animal protein and prepared foods. Its operations include beef, pork, poultry, and lamb processing, as well as the manufacture of value-added products such as frozen and prepared meals, bacon, sausages, deli meats, and other convenience foods. The company also produces leather and other related byproducts.

Founded in 1953 by José Batista Sobrinho in Anápolis, Brazil, JBS has grown from a local cattle-slaughtering business into a multinational food company.

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