J & J Snack Foods Corp. $JJSF Shares Bought by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors increased its JJSF position by 14.5% in the first quarter, buying 79,093 shares to own 624,021 shares, or approximately 3.28% of the company valued at $49.5 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high at 76.04%, while several other investment firms also expanded their relatively small positions in J & J Snack Foods.
• Analyst sentiment is cautious: JJSF has an average “Reduce” rating and a $120 target price. The stock opened at $76.50, while quarterly revenue fell 3.2% year over year despite EPS slightly exceeding estimates; its $0.80 quarterly dividend implies a 4.2% yield.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in J & J Snack Foods Corp. (NASDAQ:JJSF - Free Report) by 14.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 624,021 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 79,093 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 3.28% of J & J Snack Foods worth $49,468,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of JJSF. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 485.1% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 275 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in J & J Snack Foods by 1,133.3% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 333 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in J & J Snack Foods by 1,450.0% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 341 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in J & J Snack Foods by 902.9% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 351 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in J & J Snack Foods by 58.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 404 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. 76.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on JJSF. Zacks Research lowered shares of J & J Snack Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Benchmark reduced their target price on shares of J & J Snack Foods from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of J & J Snack Foods in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, J & J Snack Foods presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $120.00.

J & J Snack Foods Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ JJSF opened at $76.50 on Monday. J & J Snack Foods Corp. has a 52 week low of $68.87 and a 52 week high of $129.24. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $76.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.67 and a beta of 0.38.

J & J Snack Foods (NASDAQ:JJSF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.01. J & J Snack Foods had a net margin of 3.75% and a return on equity of 9.01%. The firm had revenue of $344.82 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $349.67 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.35 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that J & J Snack Foods Corp. will post 4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J & J Snack Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. J & J Snack Foods's payout ratio is 107.38%.

About J & J Snack Foods

J & J Snack Foods NASDAQ: JJSF is a U.S.-based manufacturer and distributor of branded snack foods and frozen beverages. Headquartered in Pennsauken, New Jersey, the company develops, produces and markets a broad array of proprietary and licensed products for retail, concession and foodservice customers. Its offerings span soft pretzels, frozen novelties, real Italian ice, churros and packaged beverages under well-known names such as ICEE, SuperPretzel, Luigi's and ChurroMan.

Founded in 1971 by Gerald B.

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