Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Jack In The Box Call Options (NASDAQ:JACK)

Key Points

• Jack In The Box call-option activity surged: Investors purchased 3,438 call options, 59% above the typical volume of 2,164 contracts.
• Institutional ownership remains extremely high at 99.79%, with several hedge funds and major investors recently increasing their positions.
• Analysts maintain a largely cautious outlook, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $17.22. Shares recently traded at $15.40, while quarterly EPS of $0.96 exceeded estimates despite a 22.6% year-over-year revenue decline.

Jack In The Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Friday. Investors bought 3,438 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 59% compared to the typical volume of 2,164 call options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Jack In The Box

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Jack In The Box by 5.9% in the first 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. US Bancorp DE boosted its position 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 valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 698 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Jack In The Box by 322.6% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,475 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,126 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in Jack In The Box by 43.4% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,507 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 1,363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Jack In The Box by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 376,343 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $3,639,000 after purchasing an additional 1,677 shares during the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

JACK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group set a $12.50 target price on shares of Jack In The Box in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Jack In The Box from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $16.00 price target on shares of Jack In The Box in a report on Thursday, August 13th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Jack In The Box from $14.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on Jack In The Box from $13.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $17.22.

Jack In The Box Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ JACK traded up $0.24 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $15.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 57,235 shares, compared to its average volume of 831,097. Jack In The Box has a fifty-two week low of $8.91 and a fifty-two week high of $23.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $295.35 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.97, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.38. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $14.08.

Jack In The Box (NASDAQ:JACK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The restaurant operator reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $257.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $264.60 million. Jack In The Box had a net margin of 2.84% and a negative return on equity of 6.33%. The firm's revenue was down 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.02 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Jack In The Box will post 3.14 EPS 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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