Jack In The Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment on Jack In The Box remains cautious: The stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” from 17 analysts, with 2 sells, 12 holds, and 3 buys. The average 1-year price target is about $15.84.
• Recent analyst actions were mixed, with several target cuts: TD Cowen cut its target to $12 and Guggenheim downgraded the stock to neutral, while Oppenheimer and Sanford C. Bernstein also issued updated targets. Wall Street Zen further downgraded JACK to a sell rating.
• Insider buying and institution ownership remain notable: Director Guillermo Diaz Jr. bought 5,962 shares at $11.51 each, increasing his stake by 40.48%. Meanwhile, hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.79% of the stock.

Shares of Jack In The Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Hold" from the seventeen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have given a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $15.8438.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on JACK shares. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Jack In The Box from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Guggenheim downgraded shares of Jack In The Box from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of Jack In The Box from $27.00 to $22.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $15.00 price target on shares of Jack In The Box in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Jack In The Box from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 30th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Jack In The Box

In other Jack In The Box news, Director Guillermo Diaz, Jr. purchased 5,962 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $11.51 per share, with a total value of $68,622.62. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 20,692 shares in the company, valued at approximately $238,164.92. This represents a 40.48% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Jack In The Box

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of JACK. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in Jack In The Box by 5.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 12,035 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $327,000 after purchasing an additional 671 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC raised its stake in Jack In The Box by 206.6% during the first quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 5,967 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $162,000 after purchasing an additional 11,567 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP raised its stake in Jack In The Box by 63.8% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 167,184 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $4,546,000 after purchasing an additional 65,142 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Jack In The Box by 45.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 389,327 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $7,697,000 after purchasing an additional 121,752 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Jack In The Box by 96.7% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,420 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 698 shares during the period. 99.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jack In The Box Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ JACK opened at $12.80 on Friday. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $12.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.87. Jack In The Box has a 52-week low of $8.91 and a 52-week high of $25.34. The firm has a market cap of $244.10 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.44.

Jack In The Box (NASDAQ:JACK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The restaurant operator reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $254.26 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $256.55 million. Jack In The Box had a net margin of 2.82% and a negative return on equity of 6.34%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 24.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.20 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Jack In The Box will post 3.41 EPS for the current fiscal 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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