BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $110.82.

BJ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Argus upgraded BJ’s Wholesale Club to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Loop Capital upped their price objective on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $80.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BJ opened at $117.13 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $15.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.16, a P/E/G ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.54. BJ’s Wholesale Club has a 52 week low of $71.81 and a 52 week high of $120.43. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $108.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.29 billion. BJ’s Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 35.41% and a net margin of 2.71%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that BJ’s Wholesale Club will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at BJ’s Wholesale Club

In other BJ’s Wholesale Club news, EVP William C. Werner sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.41, for a total value of $2,208,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,456,716.28. This represents a 38.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 280,400 shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.31, for a total transaction of $32,052,524.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 422,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,242,592.23. This represents a 39.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 326,405 shares of company stock worth $37,201,232. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BJ’s Wholesale Club

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,330,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,218,000 after purchasing an additional 245,731 shares in the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new position in BJ’s Wholesale Club during the third quarter worth approximately $828,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 129.0% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 38,984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,215,000 after buying an additional 21,957 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 278.6% in the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 53,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,822,000 after acquiring an additional 39,713 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club during the fourth quarter worth approximately $307,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.60% of the company’s stock.

About BJ’s Wholesale Club

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc engages in the operation of membership warehouse clubs. Its product categories include grocery, household and pet, television and electronics, furniture, computer and tablets, patio and outdoor living, lawn and garden, baby and kids, toys, home, health and beauty, appliances, and jewelry.