BJ's Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) Stock Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• BJ's Restaurants shares moved above their 200-day moving average on Tuesday, trading as high as $42.38 before last changing hands at $41.42.
• Wall Street sentiment remains cautious: the stock has a consensus Hold rating with an average price target of $42.00, while recent analyst updates included target cuts from Mizuho and Barclays.
• The company recently reported quarterly EPS of $0.57, missing expectations, though revenue came in slightly above estimates at $358.12 million and rose 2.9% year over year.

BJ's Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI - Get Free Report)'s share price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $38.67 and traded as high as $42.38. BJ's Restaurants shares last traded at $41.42, with a volume of 286,539 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BJRI. Mizuho lowered their target price on BJ's Restaurants from $44.00 to $40.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Barclays reduced their price target on 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 reduced their target price on BJ's Restaurants from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on BJ's Restaurants from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, DA Davidson assumed coverage on BJ's Restaurants in a report on Friday, March 6th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $38.00 price target for the company. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $42.00.

BJ's Restaurants Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $870.65 million, a PE ratio of 20.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $37.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.67.

BJ's Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $358.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.59 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that BJ's Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director C Bradford Richmond bought 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $34.05 per share, for a total transaction of $34,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 18,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $636,735. This trade represents a 5.65% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Brian S. Krakower sold 2,600 shares of BJ's Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.03, for a total value of $91,078.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,062 shares in the company, valued at $177,321.86. This trade represents a 33.93% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders acquired 3,200 shares of company stock worth $110,670. 4.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of BJ's Restaurants

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of BJ's Restaurants by 2.8% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,114,685 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $39,125,000 after buying an additional 30,684 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of BJ's Restaurants by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 103,013 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $3,616,000 after acquiring an additional 2,126 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of BJ's Restaurants by 5,341.1% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,047 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $107,000 after acquiring an additional 2,991 shares in the last quarter. Burney Co. acquired a new position in shares of BJ's Restaurants during the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,990,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in shares of BJ's Restaurants during the 1st quarter worth approximately $552,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.95% of the company's stock.

BJ's Restaurants Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.