J & J Snack Foods Corp. $JJSF Shares Acquired by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in J & J Snack Foods by 17.3%, owning a total of 21,621 shares valued at approximately $2.85 million.
• J & J Snack Foods announced a quarterly dividend of $0.80, marking an increase from the previous $0.78, with a yield of 2.8%.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for J & J Snack Foods, with a target price set at $142.50.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods Corp. (NASDAQ:JJSF - Free Report) by 17.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 21,621 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,181 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.11% of J & J Snack Foods worth $2,848,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of JJSF. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in J & J Snack Foods during the fourth quarter worth $55,000. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 301.3% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 634 shares of the company's stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 476 shares during the period. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of J & J Snack Foods in the first quarter valued at $232,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 1,200.0% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,807 shares of the company's stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 1,668 shares during the period. Finally, Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 56.5% in the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 1,818 shares of the company's stock valued at $282,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the period. 76.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

JJSF has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised J & J Snack Foods from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Benchmark lowered their price target on J & J Snack Foods from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $142.50.

J & J Snack Foods Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of JJSF traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $111.75. 34,946 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 155,017. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $114.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $121.92. The company has a market cap of $2.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.05 and a beta of 0.45. J & J Snack Foods Corp. has a 1-year low of $106.40 and a 1-year high of $180.80.

J & J Snack Foods (NASDAQ:JJSF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $2.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $454.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $445.98 million. J & J Snack Foods had a return on equity of 8.79% and a net margin of 5.24%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.98 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that J & J Snack Foods Corp. will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

J & J Snack Foods Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This is a boost from J & J Snack Foods's previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 16th. J & J Snack Foods's payout ratio is presently 74.59%.

About J & J Snack Foods

J&J Snack Foods Corp. engages in the manufacturing of nutritional snack foods and distribution of frozen beverages to the food service and retail supermarket industries. It operates through the following segments: Food Service, Retail Supermarkets, and Frozen Beverages. The Food Service segment includes soft pretzels, frozen novelties, churros, handheld products, and baked goods.