J & J Snack Foods (NASDAQ:JJSF) Shares Break Above 200 Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• J & J Snack Foods shares broke above their 200-day moving average, reaching $86.06 before closing at $83.67, compared with a 200-day average of $79.79.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Jefferies upgraded the stock to “buy” with a $101 target, while the consensus rating is still “Hold” with a $110.50 price target.
• The company beat quarterly earnings estimates, reporting $1.96 per share versus expectations of $1.70, but revenue fell 6.3% year over year. J&J Snack Foods also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, equal to a 3.8% annualized yield.

Shares of J & J Snack Foods Corp. (NASDAQ:JJSF - Get Free Report) passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $79.79 and traded as high as $86.06. J & J Snack Foods shares last traded at $83.67, with a volume of 130,412 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

JJSF has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of J & J Snack Foods from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $81.00 to $101.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of J & J Snack Foods from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of J & J Snack Foods in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $110.50.

J & J Snack Foods Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 2.34 and a quick ratio of 1.47. The company's fifty day moving average price is $82.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $79.79. The company has a market cap of $1.57 billion, a PE ratio of 32.18 and a beta of 0.40.

J & J Snack Foods (NASDAQ:JJSF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $425.96 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $427.65 million. J & J Snack Foods had a net margin of 3.23% and a return on equity of 8.93%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.00 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that J & J Snack Foods Corp. will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current year.

J & J Snack Foods Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. J & J Snack Foods's payout ratio is presently 123.08%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On J & J Snack Foods

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,124 shares of the company's stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 11.4% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,577 shares of the company's stock worth $199,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 43.1% in the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 455 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 43.2% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,779 shares of the company's stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 839 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 62.3% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 753 shares of the company's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. 76.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About J & J Snack Foods

J&J Snack Foods Corp. manufactures and distributes snack foods and frozen beverages for retail and foodservice customers. Its products include soft pretzels, churros, funnel cakes, cookies, baked goods, frozen novelties and frozen juice treats, as well as frozen carbonated beverages and related dispensing products.

The company markets products under brands including SuperPretzel, ICEE, Dippin' Dots, LUIGI'S, MAMMA BELLA'S and MINUTE MAID frozen novelties, along with products sold under customer and private-label brands.

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