BJ's Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) Stock Breaks Above 50 Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• BJ’s Restaurants shares rose above their 50-day moving average, reaching $63.79 and last trading at $63.28, compared with a 50-day average of $60.82.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: five analysts rate the stock a Buy, four Hold, and two Sell, while the average rating is Hold with a $56.50 target price. Recent upgrades and targets ranged as high as $80.
• The company beat quarterly expectations with adjusted EPS of $0.94 versus $0.90 expected and revenue of $388.89 million, up 6.4% year over year; however, insiders sold roughly $4.65 million of stock over the past 90 days.

BJ's Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI - Get Free Report) passed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $60.82 and traded as high as $63.79. BJ's Restaurants shares last traded at $63.28, with a volume of 477,956 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BJRI shares. DA Davidson set a $65.00 price objective on shares of BJ's Restaurants in a research note on Friday, July 31st. William Blair raised BJ's Restaurants from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Mizuho upgraded BJ's Restaurants from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $74.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Benchmark upped their price objective on BJ's Restaurants from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of BJ's Restaurants from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BJ's Restaurants presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.50.

BJ's Restaurants Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.35 billion, a PE ratio of 33.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $60.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $50.83.

BJ's Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.04. BJ's Restaurants had a net margin of 2.86% and a return on equity of 12.93%. The firm had revenue of $388.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $377.07 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.97 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that BJ's Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at BJ's Restaurants

In related news, EVP Kendra Miller sold 10,217 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.31, for a total value of $708,140.27. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 28,599 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,982,196.69. This trade represents a 26.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Noah Elbogen sold 7,535 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.14, for a total value of $528,504.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 71,655 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,025,881.70. This trade represents a 9.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 67,784 shares of company stock valued at $4,648,326 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BJ's Restaurants

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of BJ's Restaurants by 34.8% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 774 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in BJ's Restaurants in the second quarter worth $28,000. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in BJ's Restaurants during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BJ's Restaurants in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its holdings in BJ's Restaurants by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 16,561 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $581,000 after acquiring an additional 1,178 shares in the last quarter. 99.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About BJ's Restaurants

BJ's Restaurants, Inc NASDAQ: BJRI operates and develops casual dining restaurants under the BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse brand. Its restaurants offer a broad menu centered on deep-dish pizza, along with appetizers, salads, sandwiches, burgers, entrees, desserts and other American-style dishes.

The company is also known for producing and serving craft beer, including its proprietary BJ's beers, at many of its locations. Its restaurants typically combine full-service dining with a brewery-inspired atmosphere and offer dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering services, depending on the location.

BJ's traces its origins to 1978, when the first restaurant opened in Southern California.

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