J & J Snack Foods Corp. $JJSF Shares Bought by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group increased its stake in J & J Snack Foods by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, ending with 2,000,911 shares valued at about $180.8 million. The position now represents 10.53% of the company.
• J & J Snack Foods reported quarterly EPS of $0.40, slightly ahead of analyst expectations, though revenue of $344.82 million missed estimates and fell 3.2% year over year.
• The company has initiated a $50 million share buyback and recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, implying an annualized yield of 4.2%.

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in J & J Snack Foods Corp. (NASDAQ:JJSF - Free Report) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,000,911 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 31,612 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 10.53% of J & J Snack Foods worth $180,822,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its stake in J & J Snack Foods by 6.1% during the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,195 shares of the company's stock valued at $211,000 after buying an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 8,823 shares of the company's stock valued at $796,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC raised its position in J & J Snack Foods by 5.8% during the third quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,592 shares of the company's stock valued at $246,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank raised its position in J & J Snack Foods by 3.5% during the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 4,584 shares of the company's stock valued at $440,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank raised its position in J & J Snack Foods by 1.0% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 30,100 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,892,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. 76.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

J & J Snack Foods Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ JJSF opened at $76.17 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a PE ratio of 25.56 and a beta of 0.43. The business has a fifty day moving average of $81.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $86.99. J & J Snack Foods Corp. has a 52-week low of $73.53 and a 52-week high of $129.24.

J & J Snack Foods (NASDAQ:JJSF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $344.82 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $349.67 million. J & J Snack Foods had a return on equity of 9.01% and a net margin of 3.75%.The business's revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.35 earnings per share. Analysts predict that J & J Snack Foods Corp. will post 4.16 earnings per share for the current year.

J & J Snack Foods declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 3rd that allows the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

J & J Snack Foods Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th were issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th. J & J Snack Foods's payout ratio is currently 107.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

JJSF has been the topic of several analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded J & J Snack Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Thursday. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of J & J Snack Foods in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of J & J Snack Foods in a research report on Friday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $130.00.

J & J Snack Foods Company Profile

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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