Morgan Stanley Lowers Jack In The Box (NASDAQ:JACK) Price Target to $15.00

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley cut its price target on Jack In The Box from $19 to $15 and maintained an "equal weight" rating, implying roughly a 17.3% upside from the recent close.
• Analysts are mixed: MarketBeat records a consensus "Hold" rating with a consensus price target of $22.18, while individual firms have diverged recently (UBS up to $21, Stifel/Mizuho/TD Cowen cutting targets into the $10–$12 range).
• Fundamentals show weakness—shares traded at $12.79, the company missed quarterly EPS ($1.00 vs. $1.10 expected) with revenue down 5.8% year-over-year and negative margins/P/E—signaling operational pressure.

Jack In The Box (NASDAQ:JACK - Get Free Report) had its price objective decreased by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $19.00 to $15.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the restaurant operator's stock. Morgan Stanley's price target would indicate a potential upside of 17.32% from the stock's previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Jack In The Box from $17.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Jack In The Box from $18.00 to $10.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Jack In The Box from $18.00 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Jack In The Box from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 19th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Jack In The Box from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Jack In The Box has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $22.18.

Jack In The Box Stock Performance

Shares of JACK traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $12.79. The company had a trading volume of 178,281 shares, compared to its average volume of 732,349. Jack In The Box has a 52 week low of $8.91 and a 52 week high of $29.40. The company has a market capitalization of $243.43 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.32. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $13.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.30.

Jack In The Box (NASDAQ:JACK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.10). Jack In The Box had a negative return on equity of 7.12% and a negative net margin of 8.69%.The firm had revenue of $349.52 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $355.73 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.86 earnings per share. Jack In The Box's revenue was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Jack In The Box will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Jack In The Box

In other Jack In The Box news, CEO Lance F. Tucker sold 3,150 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.83, for a total transaction of $68,764.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 204,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,454,804.44. This represents a 1.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in JACK. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of Jack In The Box by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 12,035 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $327,000 after acquiring an additional 671 shares during the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Jack In The Box by 206.6% in 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 last quarter. Woodline Partners LP lifted its stake in Jack In The Box by 63.8% in 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 last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Jack In The Box by 165.5% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,341 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 836 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Jack In The Box in the third quarter worth about $65,000. Institutional investors own 99.79% of the company's stock.

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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