BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) Given New $125.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ - Get Free Report) had its target price increased by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $115.00 to $125.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price target would indicate a potential upside of 10.77% from the stock's current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on BJ's Wholesale Club from $109.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on BJ's Wholesale Club from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club from $102.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on BJ's Wholesale Club from $80.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, BJ's Wholesale Club currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $116.75.

BJ's Wholesale Club Trading Down 1.8%

BJ's Wholesale Club stock traded down $2.11 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $112.84. 533,308 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,667,677. BJ's Wholesale Club has a fifty-two week low of $76.33 and a fifty-two week high of $121.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.13, a PEG ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a current ratio of 0.76. The firm's 50 day moving average is $115.00 and its 200-day moving average is $104.17.

BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.23. BJ's Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 35.41% and a net margin of 2.71%. The company had revenue of $5.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.85 earnings per share. BJ's Wholesale Club's revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that BJ's Wholesale Club will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other BJ's Wholesale Club news, SVP Joseph Mcgrail sold 2,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.74, for a total transaction of $251,454.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,705,097.60. This represents a 12.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Robert Allan Steele sold 11,813 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.59, for a total value of $1,270,960.67. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 24,351 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,619,924.09. This trade represents a 32.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 328,505 shares of company stock valued at $37,452,686 over the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 23,894.5% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 30,473 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,477,000 after purchasing an additional 30,346 shares in the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC bought a new position in BJ's Wholesale Club during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,153,000. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in BJ's Wholesale Club in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,153,000. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in BJ's Wholesale Club by 2.5% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 55,299 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,310,000 after purchasing an additional 1,331 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 4.2% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 526,137 shares of the company's stock worth $60,032,000 after purchasing an additional 20,975 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.60% of the company's stock.

BJ's Wholesale Club Company Profile

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.