Burney Co. Buys New Holdings in BJ's Restaurants, Inc. $BJRI

Key Points

• Burney Co. initiated a new position in BJ's Restaurants during the first quarter, buying 113,673 shares valued at about $3.99 million. The stake represented roughly 0.54% of the company.
• Several other institutional investors also added to BJRI, and institutions now own 99.95% of the stock. Recent filings show large increases from firms like UBS Group and Arrowstreet Capital.
• Analysts remain cautious overall: BJRI has an average rating of “Hold” with a consensus price target of $42, even though the stock was trading at $60.26 and insiders recently sold shares.

Burney Co. purchased a new position in shares of BJ's Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 113,673 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $3,990,000. Burney Co. owned about 0.54% of BJ's Restaurants as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. UBS Group AG boosted its stake in shares of BJ's Restaurants by 576.9% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,451,883 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $44,326,000 after acquiring an additional 1,237,383 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in BJ's Restaurants by 48.8% in the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 935,375 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $28,557,000 after acquiring an additional 306,930 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in BJ's Restaurants during the 2nd quarter valued at $13,380,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in BJ's Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at $10,863,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in BJ's Restaurants by 394.5% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 309,269 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $12,185,000 after purchasing an additional 246,733 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.95% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BJRI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of BJ's Restaurants from $42.00 to $38.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of BJ's Restaurants from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of BJ's Restaurants from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Benchmark raised their price objective on shares of BJ's Restaurants from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on BJ's Restaurants from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $42.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at BJ's Restaurants

In related news, EVP Brian S. Krakower sold 7,341 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.17, for a total value of $405,002.97. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,721 shares of the company's stock, valued at $260,457.57. This trade represents a 60.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Noah A. Elbogen sold 4,652 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total value of $251,208.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 76,235 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,116,690. The trade was a 5.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 63,817 shares of company stock worth $3,384,688 over the last quarter. 4.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

BJ's Restaurants Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of BJRI stock opened at $60.26 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $42.55. BJ's Restaurants, Inc. has a 1 year low of $28.46 and a 1 year high of $62.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock has a market cap of $1.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.31.

BJ's Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The restaurant operator reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $358.12 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $356.97 million. BJ's Restaurants had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 13.48%. The business's revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.59 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that BJ's Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About BJ's Restaurants

BJ's Restaurants, Inc is a publicly traded casual dining chain known for its deep‐dish pizzas, California‐style thin crust offerings and in‐house craft beer selections. Operating under the BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse brand, the company combines a microbrewery concept with full‐service dining, offering an extensive menu that includes appetizers, salads, pasta dishes, sandwiches and the signature Pizookie dessert.

Founded in 1978 in Orange County, California, BJ's Restaurants began as BJ's Chicago Pizzeria, bringing a Chicago‐style pizza experience to the West Coast.

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