Investors Buy Large Volume of Jack In The Box Call Options (NASDAQ:JACK)

Key Points

• Unusual options activity: Investors bought 8,301 Jack In The Box call options, 332% above the average volume of 1,923 contracts.
• Insider and institutional buying: Director Guillermo Diaz Jr. purchased 5,962 shares, while several hedge funds increased or initiated positions; institutions and hedge funds own 99.79% of the stock.
• Mixed outlook: Shares rose to $19.72, but analysts maintain an average “Hold” rating with a $16.41 price target. The company beat quarterly EPS estimates, although revenue fell 22.6% year over year.

Jack In The Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Investors acquired 8,301 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 332% compared to the average volume of 1,923 call options.

Insider Transactions at Jack In The Box

In other Jack In The Box news, Director Guillermo Diaz, Jr. bought 5,962 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $11.51 per share, with a total value of $68,622.62. Following the acquisition, the director owned 20,692 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $238,164.92. The trade was a 40.48% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jack In The Box

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Maxi Investments CY Ltd acquired a new position in Jack In The Box during the fourth quarter worth $2,263,000. Ruffer LLP acquired a new stake in Jack In The Box in the fourth quarter valued at $3,223,000. Seven Six Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Jack In The Box by 53.0% in the first quarter. Seven Six Capital Management LLC now owns 181,150 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $1,752,000 after acquiring an additional 62,750 shares during the last quarter. Callodine Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Jack In The Box by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Callodine Capital Management LP now owns 1,760,470 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $17,024,000 after acquiring an additional 59,966 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Jack In The Box by 106.7% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 6,107 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $97,000 after acquiring an additional 3,152 shares during the period. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on JACK shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Jack In The Box from $10.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Jack In The Box in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Jack In The Box from $19.00 to $15.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Jack In The Box from $17.00 to $12.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Jack In The Box in a report on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $16.41.

Jack In The Box Price Performance

NASDAQ:JACK traded up $0.95 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $19.72. 1,036,476 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 841,897. Jack In The Box has a twelve month low of $8.91 and a twelve month high of $23.86. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $14.87 and a 200 day moving average of $14.59. The stock has a market cap of $376.10 million, a PE ratio of 10.68, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.38.

Jack In The Box (NASDAQ:JACK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 12th. The restaurant operator reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $257.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $264.70 million. Jack In The Box had a net margin of 2.82% and a negative return on equity of 6.34%. The firm's revenue was down 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.02 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Jack In The Box will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Jack In The Box Company Profile

Jack in the Box NASDAQ: JACK is a publicly traded quick-service restaurant company best known for its Jack in the Box brand of fast-food restaurants. Founded in 1951 by Robert O. Peterson and headquartered in San Diego, California, the company has operated for decades as a franchisor and operator of drive-thru and dine-in restaurants. Its business model combines company-owned locations with franchise arrangements, and the company focuses on building brand recognition through menu innovation, marketing and service convenience.

The company’s core offerings center on a broad fast-food menu that includes hamburgers (notably the Jumbo Jack), tacos, breakfast items, sandwiches, salads, sides and specialty limited-time items.

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