BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) Downgraded by Weiss Ratings to "Hold (C+)"

Key Points

• BJ's Wholesale Club has been downgraded by Weiss Ratings from "buy (b-)" to "hold (c+)", signaling a more cautious outlook for the stock.
• Multiple analysts have lowered their target prices for BJ's stock, with Citigroup reducing its target from $120.00 to $115.00 while maintaining a "buy" rating, and Evercore ISI cutting their target from $108.00 to $105.00.
• Insider selling activity has been notable, with executives selling a total of 108,561 shares over the last 90 days, raising concerns about future stock performance.

BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Weiss Ratings from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report released on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 25th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club from $108.00 to $105.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club from $125.00 to $115.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 25th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their target price on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club from $140.00 to $123.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $114.31.

BJ's Wholesale Club Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:BJ traded down $0.78 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $89.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,084,061 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,979,810. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $99.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $107.67. The company has a market capitalization of $11.75 billion, a PE ratio of 20.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.79. BJ's Wholesale Club has a fifty-two week low of $83.92 and a fifty-two week high of $121.10.

BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 22nd. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.49 billion. BJ's Wholesale Club had a net margin of 2.77% and a return on equity of 30.40%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.09 earnings per share. BJ's Wholesale Club has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.200-4.35 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that BJ's Wholesale Club will post 3.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at BJ's Wholesale Club

In other news, EVP Graham Luce sold 6,300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.86, for a total transaction of $629,118.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 11,617 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,160,073.62. This trade represents a 35.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Paul Cichocki sold 58,436 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.08, for a total transaction of $6,432,634.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 114,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,563,100.16. The trade was a 33.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 108,561 shares of company stock worth $11,735,689 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BJ's Wholesale Club

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BJ. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 2.2% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,712,353 shares of the company's stock worth $615,963,000 after buying an additional 121,183 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 0.8% during the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 4,366,509 shares of the company's stock worth $498,219,000 after buying an additional 35,130 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 65.9% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 4,186,760 shares of the company's stock worth $477,709,000 after buying an additional 1,662,415 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in BJ's Wholesale Club by 12.7% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,639,011 shares of the company's stock valued at $392,395,000 after purchasing an additional 410,326 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in BJ's Wholesale Club by 0.4% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,997,697 shares of the company's stock valued at $323,242,000 after purchasing an additional 11,203 shares during the period. 98.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About BJ's Wholesale Club

BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc engages in the operation of membership warehouse clubs. Its product categories include grocery, household and pet, television and electronics, furniture, computer and tablets, patio and outdoor living, lawn and garden, baby and kids, toys, home, health and beauty, appliances, and jewelry.

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