Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft Begins Coverage on BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ)

Research analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) in a research report issued on Thursday. The brokerage set a “hold” rating on the stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research note on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $110.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $120.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.64.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of BJ stock traded up $1.08 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $89.27. 479,603 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,475,942. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $91.57 and a 200 day moving average of $97.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. BJ’s Wholesale Club has a 1 year low of $86.68 and a 1 year high of $121.10. The firm has a market cap of $11.68 billion, a PE ratio of 20.59, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.33.

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 21st. The company reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.07. BJ’s Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 28.66% and a net margin of 2.72%.The firm had revenue of $5.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. BJ’s Wholesale Club’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. BJ’s Wholesale Club has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.300-4.400 EPS. Analysts expect that BJ’s Wholesale Club will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 17,898 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.71, for a total value of $1,605,629.58. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 296,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,620,096.85. This represents a 5.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP William C. Werner sold 7,000 shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.09, for a total value of $637,630.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 50,498 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,599,862.82. This represents a 12.17% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of BJ’s Wholesale Club

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club during the 2nd quarter worth $834,000. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its position in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 7.3% in the third quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 924,785 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,236,000 after buying an additional 62,903 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in BJ’s Wholesale Club during the second quarter worth about $577,000. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 12.5% during the third quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 302,329 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,192,000 after acquiring an additional 33,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 252.8% in the 2nd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 13,326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,437,000 after acquiring an additional 9,549 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.60% of the company’s stock.

About BJ’s Wholesale Club

BJ’s Wholesale Club, headquartered in Westborough, Massachusetts, is a membership-based warehouse retailer offering a wide range of products and services primarily to small businesses and individual consumers. The company operates large-format clubs that provide value-priced groceries, health and beauty products, electronics, home goods, furniture, seasonal items and automotive supplies. In addition to its in-club offerings, BJ’s features fuel stations at many locations and operates an e-commerce platform for online ordering and home delivery.

Founded in 1984 as a division of Zayre Corp., BJ’s Wholesale Club quickly expanded throughout the Northeastern United States.