Clearline Capital LP Sells 250,426 Shares of Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK)

Clearline Capital LP reduced its position in Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK - Free Report) by 96.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,304 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 250,426 shares during the period. Clearline Capital LP owned about 0.05% of Jack in the Box worth $429,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in Jack in the Box by 96.7% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 899 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 442 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Jack in the Box by 229.7% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,055 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 735 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Jack in the Box by 99.5% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,235 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 616 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Jack in the Box by 168.6% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,558 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 978 shares in the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Jack in the Box during the 4th quarter valued at about $72,000. 99.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jack in the Box Stock Down 1.1 %

NASDAQ:JACK traded down $0.30 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $26.92. The company had a trading volume of 469,526 shares, compared to its average volume of 659,578. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $27.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $37.60. Jack in the Box Inc. has a one year low of $22.01 and a one year high of $60.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $507.66 million, a PE ratio of -13.81, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.35.

Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The restaurant operator reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $469.44 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $470.47 million. Jack in the Box had a negative net margin of 2.34% and a negative return on equity of 15.79%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Jack in the Box Inc. will post 5.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Jack in the Box Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.54%. Jack in the Box's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -82.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wedbush cut Jack in the Box from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $50.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $24.00 target price on shares of Jack in the Box in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Jack in the Box in a report on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com upgraded Jack in the Box from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Jack in the Box from $53.00 to $45.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $44.00.

Jack in the Box Company Profile

Jack in the Box Inc operates and franchises Jack in the Box and Del Taco quick-service restaurants in the United States. The company was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.