Brokerages Set BJ's Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI) Target Price at $38.00

Key Points

• BJ's Restaurants, Inc. has received an average rating of "Reduce" from six analysts, with target prices averaging $38.00 per share.
• The company's recent quarterly earnings report indicated an EPS of $0.59, surpassing expectations of $0.39.
• Insider selling activity has increased, with significant shares sold by both Brian S. Krakower and Greg Trojan, resulting in substantial decreases in their positions.

Shares of BJ's Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Reduce" by the six brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $38.00.

BJRI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded BJ's Restaurants from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Barclays raised their price target on BJ's Restaurants from $33.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $33.00 price target on BJ's Restaurants and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other BJ's Restaurants news, insider Brian S. Krakower sold 3,738 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.32, for a total transaction of $165,668.16. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,579 shares in the company, valued at $202,941.28. This trade represents a 44.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Greg Trojan sold 146,102 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.63, for a total value of $6,520,532.26. Following the transaction, the director owned 19,896 shares in the company, valued at $887,958.48. The trade was a 88.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BJRI. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of BJ's Restaurants by 12.8% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 699,434 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $24,575,000 after acquiring an additional 79,512 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in BJ's Restaurants by 23.2% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 33,606 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $1,181,000 after buying an additional 6,322 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in BJ's Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $108,000. Integrated Quantitative Investments LLC purchased a new position in BJ's Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $418,000. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its stake in BJ's Restaurants by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 33,417 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $1,174,000 after buying an additional 2,743 shares during the last quarter. 99.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BJ's Restaurants Stock Performance

BJ's Restaurants stock traded down $0.98 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $35.74. 65,336 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 415,400. The stock has a market capitalization of $790.52 million, a PE ratio of 37.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.31. BJ's Restaurants has a 12-month low of $27.61 and a 12-month high of $47.02. The business's 50-day moving average is $43.06 and its 200-day moving average is $38.11.

BJ's Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $347.97 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $347.70 million. BJ's Restaurants had a return on equity of 10.35% and a net margin of 1.64%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that BJ's Restaurants will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About BJ's Restaurants

BJ's Restaurants, Inc owns and operates casual dining restaurants in the United States. Its restaurants offer pizzas, craft and other beers, appetizers, entrées, pastas, sandwiches, specialty salads, and desserts under brand name Pizookie. The company was formerly known as Chicago Pizza & Brewery, Inc and changed its name to BJ's Restaurants, Inc in August 2004.