J & J Snack Foods (NASDAQ:JJSF) Sets New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

J & J Snack Foods Corp. (NASDAQ:JJSF) hit a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $77.77 and last traded at $79.3150, with a volume of 120517 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $82.52.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on JJSF. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of J & J Snack Foods in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Zacks Research cut shares of J & J Snack Foods from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of J & J Snack Foods in a report on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $130.00.

J & J Snack Foods Price Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average of $88.59 and a 200-day moving average of $92.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.93 and a beta of 0.34.

J & J Snack Foods (NASDAQ:JJSF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.01. J & J Snack Foods had a net margin of 3.92% and a return on equity of 8.79%. The company had revenue of $343.78 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $365.95 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.33 EPS. J & J Snack Foods’s revenue was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that J & J Snack Foods Corp. will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

J & J Snack Foods Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. J & J Snack Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.91%.

J & J Snack Foods announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 3rd that allows the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 485.1% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 1,133.3% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 333 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 1,450.0% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 341 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of J & J Snack Foods by 902.9% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in J & J Snack Foods by 58.4% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 404 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.04% of the company’s stock.

About J & J Snack Foods

J & J Snack Foods (NASDAQ: JJSF) is a U.S.-based manufacturer and distributor of branded snack foods and frozen beverages. Headquartered in Pennsauken, New Jersey, the company develops, produces and markets a broad array of proprietary and licensed products for retail, concession and foodservice customers. Its offerings span soft pretzels, frozen novelties, real Italian ice, churros and packaged beverages under well-known names such as ICEE, SuperPretzel, Luigi’s and ChurroMan.

Founded in 1971 by Gerald B.