Alliancebernstein L.P. Raises Position in BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. $BJ

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, owning 1,534,337 shares worth approximately $175.07 million after purchasing an additional 11,119 shares.
• Research analysts have set a consensus price target of $113.18 for BJ's Wholesale Club, with ten analysts rating it a "Buy" and nine a "Hold".
• BJ's Wholesale Club reported a quarterly EPS of $1.14, exceeding estimates, while revenues totaled $5.38 billion, slightly below expectations.

Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ - Free Report) by 0.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,534,337 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 11,119 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned 1.17% of BJ's Wholesale Club worth $175,068,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in BJ's Wholesale Club by 195.6% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,198,084 shares of the company's stock valued at $136,019,000 after purchasing an additional 792,808 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in BJ's Wholesale Club by 100.0% during the first quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 100,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,410,000 after purchasing an additional 50,000 shares during the period. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec grew its holdings in BJ's Wholesale Club by 7.7% during the first quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 24,160 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,757,000 after purchasing an additional 1,730 shares during the period. Maverick Capital Ltd. bought a new stake in BJ's Wholesale Club during the first quarter valued at about $3,286,000. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new stake in BJ's Wholesale Club during the first quarter valued at about $440,000. Institutional investors own 98.60% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Paul Cichocki sold 58,436 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 114,127 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,563,100.16. This represents a 33.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 17,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.08, for a total value of $1,916,732.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 368,333 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $39,441,097.64. The trade was a 4.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 120,161 shares of company stock valued at $13,023,303. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

BJ's Wholesale Club Price Performance

BJ's Wholesale Club stock traded down $0.27 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $97.26. 318,331 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,938,613. The stock's fifty day moving average is $103.88 and its 200-day moving average is $109.34. BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.08 and a 12 month high of $121.10. The stock has a market cap of $12.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.26, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on BJ's Wholesale Club from $113.00 to $110.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 25th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $120.00 price objective (up previously from $110.00) on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $106.00 price objective (up previously from $101.00) on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on BJ's Wholesale Club from $125.00 to $115.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 25th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, BJ's Wholesale Club currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $113.18.

BJ's Wholesale Club 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.