Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Acquires 30,684 Shares of BJ's Restaurants, Inc. $BJRI

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors increased its BJ’s Restaurants stake by 2.8%, purchasing 30,684 shares to hold 1.11 million shares, or about 5.3% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 99.95% of BJRI.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $56.88. Recent actions included Benchmark and Citigroup raising targets, while Barclays lowered its target and maintained an underweight rating.
• BJRI reported quarterly earnings of $0.94 per share, beating estimates of $0.90, while revenue rose 6.4% year over year to $388.89 million. The stock opened at $68.29, near its one-year high of $74.60, while insiders sold 63,817 shares worth approximately $3.38 million during the quarter.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of BJ's Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI - Free Report) by 2.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,114,685 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 30,684 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 5.30% of BJ's Restaurants worth $39,125,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BJRI. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BJ's Restaurants by 187.7% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 699 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 456 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its stake in shares of BJ's Restaurants by 1,618.3% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,031 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 971 shares during the last quarter. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of BJ's Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth $63,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in BJ's Restaurants by 77.5% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,317 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $103,000 after acquiring an additional 1,012 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in BJ's Restaurants by 5,341.1% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,047 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 2,991 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BJRI. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of BJ's Restaurants from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. 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 report on Wednesday, May 6th. Benchmark increased their target price on shares of BJ's Restaurants from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. William Blair raised BJ's Restaurants from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on BJ's Restaurants from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Three 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 currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $56.88.

Insider Activity at BJ's Restaurants

In other news, Director Noah A. Elbogen sold 4,652 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 $4,116,690. The trade was a 5.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Lea Anne Ottinger sold 2,792 shares of BJ's Restaurants stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.50, for a total value of $149,372.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 39,701 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,124,003.50. The trade was a 6.57% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 63,817 shares of company stock valued at $3,384,688. Insiders own 2.40% of the company's stock.

BJ's Restaurants Price Performance

BJ's Restaurants stock opened at $68.29 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.03 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The company has a market capitalization of $1.44 billion, a PE ratio of 36.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.31. BJ's Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $28.46 and a one year high of $74.60. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $57.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $45.78.

BJ's Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $388.89 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $377.07 million. BJ's Restaurants had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 2.86%.The business's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.97 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that BJ's Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BJ's Restaurants Company Profile

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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