BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. $BJ is Walter Public Investments Inc.'s 4th Largest Position

Key Points

• Walter Public Investments Inc. reduced its BJ's Wholesale Club stake by 29.4% in the first quarter, but BJ still remains its 4th-largest holding and makes up 4.2% of its portfolio.
• BJ's Wholesale Club reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.10 beating estimates and revenue of $5.66 billion topping expectations; revenue rose 9.9% year over year.
• Insider activity was mixed but tilted toward selling, as both the CEO and an SVP sold shares in April under pre-arranged trading plans, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus "Hold" with an average price target of $105.27.

Walter Public Investments Inc. cut its position in BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ - Free Report) by 29.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 180,431 shares of the company's stock after selling 75,039 shares during the period. BJ's Wholesale Club accounts for 4.2% of Walter Public Investments Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Walter Public Investments Inc. owned approximately 0.14% of BJ's Wholesale Club worth $17,758,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in BJ's Wholesale Club in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Strive Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 147.9% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 290 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new stake in BJ's Wholesale Club during the 4th quarter worth $43,000. 98.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at BJ's Wholesale Club

In other news, SVP Joseph Mcgrail sold 2,050 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.19, for a total value of $186,939.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 14,769 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,346,785.11. The trade was a 12.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.02, for a total transaction of $728,160.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 306,330 shares in the company, valued at $27,882,156.60. The trade was a 2.55% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 26,550 shares of company stock worth $2,435,904. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

BJ's Wholesale Club Stock Performance

NYSE:BJ opened at $89.20 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The company has a market capitalization of $11.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.22. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $90.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $93.73. BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $83.21 and a twelve month high of $110.92.

BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 22nd. The company reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $5.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.44 billion. BJ's Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 26.67% and a net margin of 2.62%.The business's revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.14 earnings per share. BJ's Wholesale Club has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.400-4.600 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BJ has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $109.00 price target on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club from $118.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $110.00 price objective on the stock. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $105.27.

About BJ's Wholesale Club

BJ's Wholesale Club, headquartered in Westborough, Massachusetts, is a membership-based warehouse retailer offering a wide range of products and services primarily to small businesses and individual consumers. The company operates large-format clubs that provide value-priced groceries, health and beauty products, electronics, home goods, furniture, seasonal items and automotive supplies. In addition to its in-club offerings, BJ's features fuel stations at many locations and operates an e-commerce platform for online ordering and home delivery.

Founded in 1984 as a division of Zayre Corp., BJ's Wholesale Club quickly expanded throughout the Northeastern United States.

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