Kendra Miller Sells 2,978 Shares of BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) Stock

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI) EVP Kendra Miller sold 2,978 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.80, for a total value of $207,864.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 25,621 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,788,345.80. This represents a 10.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

BJ’s Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BJRI opened at $69.55 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.32. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $59.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.44. BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $28.46 and a fifty-two week high of $74.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.29.

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $388.89 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $377.07 million. BJ’s Restaurants had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 2.86%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.97 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BJRI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Benchmark increased their price target on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Zacks Research upgraded BJ’s Restaurants from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. William Blair raised BJ’s Restaurants from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $42.00 to $38.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on BJ’s Restaurants from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $56.88.

BJ’s Restaurants News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting BJ’s Restaurants this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Recent analyst actions remain supportive. Benchmark raised its price target from $68 to $80 and upgraded the stock to “Buy,” while William Blair moved BJRI to “Outperform.” Zacks also identified BJRI as a highly ranked value stock and included it among stocks benefiting from recent broker upgrades. Zacks value stock article Zacks broker upgrades article
• Positive Sentiment: The latest quarterly results exceeded expectations: earnings per share were $0.94 versus the $0.90 consensus estimate, while revenue of $388.9 million surpassed forecasts of $377.1 million and increased 6.4% year over year. These results provide fundamental support for BJRI, although EPS was below $0.97 in the prior-year quarter.
• Positive Sentiment: Several institutions increased their BJRI holdings during the first quarter, including Bank of America, which raised its position by 73.5%, and Royal Bank of Canada, which increased its stake by 238%. Institutional investors own approximately 99.95% of the shares.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst opinion remains cautious overall. BJRI has an average “Hold” recommendation, with five Holds and two Sells compared with four Buy or Strong Buy ratings. The consensus price target is $56.88, below recent trading levels, although individual targets range as high as $80. Average Hold recommendation article
• Negative Sentiment: Insiders have sold heavily as the stock trades near its 52-week high. EVP Gregory S. Lynds sold 21,704 shares on August 6 after selling 25,350 shares on August 3, reducing his holdings by 46.7% in the latest transaction. EVP Kendra D. Miller sold 10,217 shares on August 6 and another 2,978 shares on August 7, cutting her position by 10.4% in the latest sale. The transactions totaled roughly $4.1 million and may reinforce profit-taking concerns.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BJ’s Restaurants

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BJRI. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of BJ’s Restaurants in the 2nd quarter valued at about $200,006,000. UBS Group AG lifted its position in BJ’s Restaurants by 576.9% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,451,883 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $44,326,000 after acquiring an additional 1,237,383 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in BJ’s Restaurants by 48.8% in the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 935,375 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $28,557,000 after acquiring an additional 306,930 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in BJ’s Restaurants in the second quarter valued at approximately $13,380,000. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in BJ’s Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth $10,863,000. Institutional investors own 99.95% of the company’s stock.

BJ’s Restaurants Company Profile

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc is a publicly traded casual dining chain known for its deep‐dish pizzas, California‐style thin crust offerings and in‐house craft beer selections. Operating under the BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse brand, the company combines a microbrewery concept with full‐service dining, offering an extensive menu that includes appetizers, salads, pasta dishes, sandwiches and the signature Pizookie dessert.

Founded in 1978 in Orange County, California, BJ’s Restaurants began as BJ’s Chicago Pizzeria, bringing a Chicago‐style pizza experience to the West Coast.