BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) Upgraded to "Buy" at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Saturday.

BJ has been the subject of a number of other reports. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $127.00 price target (up from $125.00) on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club in a research note on Friday. Barclays increased their price target on BJ's Wholesale Club from $80.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. DA Davidson increased their price target on BJ's Wholesale Club from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on BJ's Wholesale Club from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Citigroup upgraded BJ's Wholesale Club from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $115.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $116.75.

BJ's Wholesale Club Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE BJ traded down $1.49 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $114.99. 1,598,997 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,672,080. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $114.87 and a 200 day moving average of $104.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. BJ's Wholesale Club has a 1 year low of $76.33 and a 1 year high of $121.10. The stock has a market cap of $15.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.64, a P/E/G ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.59.

BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 last year, the business posted $0.85 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that BJ's Wholesale Club will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other BJ's Wholesale Club news, 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 transaction of $1,270,960.67. Following the transaction, the director now owns 24,351 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,619,924.09. This represents a 32.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $251,454.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 14,240 shares in the company, valued at $1,705,097.60. This represents a 12.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 328,505 shares of company stock valued at $37,452,686 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BJ's Wholesale Club

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,330,361 shares of the company's stock valued at $208,218,000 after acquiring an additional 245,731 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 278.6% in the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 53,968 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,822,000 after acquiring an additional 39,713 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its position in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 151.8% in the fourth quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 19,784 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,768,000 after acquiring an additional 11,928 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $307,000. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its position in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 1,462.2% in the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 54,208 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,843,000 after acquiring an additional 50,738 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.