BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) Stock Bumped Down to Neutral by Citigroup

Citigroup cut shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $113.00 target price on the stock, up from their previous target price of $111.00.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on BJ. DA Davidson set a $108.00 price objective on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. William Blair lowered shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from a “mixed” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research note on Friday, October 30th. They set a “strong-buy” rating for the company. UBS Group boosted their price target on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised BJ’s Wholesale Club from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $106.19.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of BJ stock traded down $1.78 on Friday, reaching $109.48. 1,406,291 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,062,484. BJ’s Wholesale Club has a 52 week low of $83.21 and a 52 week high of $113.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.83 billion, a PE ratio of 23.96, a P/E/G ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.12. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $98.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $94.92.

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 21st. The company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.19. BJ’s Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 27.40% and a net margin of 2.62%. The company had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.14 EPS. BJ’s Wholesale Club’s quarterly revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. BJ’s Wholesale Club has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.600-4.800 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that BJ’s Wholesale Club will post 4.70 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at BJ’s Wholesale Club

In related news, SVP Joseph Mcgrail sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.65, for a total value of $144,975.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 13,269 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,282,448.85. The trade was a 10.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Laura L. Felice sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.53, for a total value of $1,105,300.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 84,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,330,500.48. This represents a 10.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 228,436 shares of company stock worth $23,343,836. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of BJ’s Wholesale Club

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in the third quarter worth $221,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 18.8% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,459 shares of the company’s stock valued at $389,000 after buying an additional 705 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 57,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,329,000 after acquiring an additional 4,486 shares during the period. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. increased its position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 23.0% in the 3rd quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. now owns 1,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $163,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares during the period. Finally, Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 20.5% in the 3rd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 8,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $752,000 after acquiring an additional 1,389 shares during the period. 98.60% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BJ’s Wholesale Club News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: BJ’s plans to open its second Kentucky club in Frankfort on November 13, adding to its store network. Article: BJ’s Wholesale Club To Open 2nd KY Location In Frankfort Nov. 13
• Positive Sentiment: A planning board granted preliminary site-plan approval for a proposed BJ’s club in New Hartford, New York, advancing another potential location. Article: New Hartford Planning Board grants preliminary site plan approval to BJ’s Wholesale Club
• Neutral Sentiment: EVP Laura Felice sold 10,000 shares for about $1.1 million under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. She retained 84,416 shares, which makes the sale a limited signal about the company’s outlook. Article: Insider Selling: BJ’s Wholesale Club EVP Sells $1,105,300 in Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Citigroup downgraded BJ from Buy to Neutral, saying investor optimism is already reflected in the shares. Citi raised its price target to $113 from $111, but the downgrade may temper enthusiasm after the stock’s recent strength. Article: Citi downgrades BJ’s Wholesale, says optimism already priced in
• Negative Sentiment: A public hearing on a proposed BJ’s development in Branford will continue, leaving the project’s approval unresolved and potentially extending the timeline. Article: Branford to continue public hearing on proposed BJ’s development

BJ’s Wholesale Club Company Profile

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc operates membership-based warehouse clubs in the United States. The company sells a wide selection of groceries, fresh foods, household essentials, electronics, furniture, appliances, apparel, health and beauty products, and other general merchandise. Its business model is built around offering products in bulk and at discounted prices to members.

BJ’s also operates gas stations at many of its warehouse clubs and provides services such as optical centers, tire centers, home improvement services, and online grocery fulfillment in select locations.