Engineers Gate Manager LP Sells 25,980 Shares of BJ's Restaurants, Inc. $BJRI

Key Points

• Engineers Gate Manager LP cut its BJ’s Restaurants position by 60.1% in the second quarter, selling 25,980 shares and retaining 17,240 shares valued at approximately $1.05 million.
• Institutional ownership remains very high at 99.95%, although several firms—including WINTON GROUP, which more than doubled its stake—recently adjusted their positions.
• BJ’s Restaurants exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.94 in earnings per share and $388.9 million in revenue, while analyst sentiment remained mixed with an overall “Hold” rating and an average price target of $56.88.

Engineers Gate Manager LP trimmed its position in shares of BJ's Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI - Free Report) by 60.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,240 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 25,980 shares during the quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP owned 0.08% of BJ's Restaurants worth $1,047,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BJRI. WINTON GROUP Ltd boosted its position in shares of BJ's Restaurants by 114.7% during the fourth quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 74,958 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,953,000 after buying an additional 40,037 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in BJ's Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,148,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in BJ's Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $5,724,000. Burney Co. bought a new stake in BJ's Restaurants in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $3,990,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in BJ's Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,713,000. 99.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Mizuho set a $74.00 price objective on shares of BJ's Restaurants in a report on Friday, July 31st. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of BJ's Restaurants from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Zacks Research downgraded shares of BJ's Restaurants from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday. William Blair upgraded shares of BJ's Restaurants from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Benchmark lifted their price target 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, July 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $56.88.

BJ's Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of BJ's Restaurants stock opened at $59.52 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $64.97 and a 200-day moving average of $50.90. The company has a market cap of $1.27 billion, a PE ratio of 31.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. BJ's Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $28.46 and a 1-year high of $74.60.

BJ's Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.04. BJ's Restaurants had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 2.86%.The firm had revenue of $388.89 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $377.07 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.97 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that BJ's Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Kendra Miller sold 10,217 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.31, for a total value of $708,140.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 28,599 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,982,196.69. This represents a 26.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Gregory Lynds sold 25,350 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.47, for a total transaction of $1,710,364.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,474 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,135,600.78. The trade was a 35.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 67,784 shares of company stock worth $4,648,326 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.40% of the company's stock.

BJ's Restaurants Company Profile

BJ's Restaurants, Inc operates casual dining restaurants under the BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse brand. Its restaurants offer a broad menu that includes deep-dish and tavern-style pizzas, burgers, salads, sandwiches, pasta, entrees, desserts and other American-style cuisine.

The company is also known for its handcrafted beer program, which includes a range of house-brewed beers served alongside its food offerings. BJ's restaurants generally combine full-service dining with a casual, family-friendly atmosphere and operate in locations across the United States.

BJ's Restaurants traces its origins to 1978, when its first location opened in Southern California.

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