BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) EVP Brian Krakower Sells 3,475 Shares

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI) EVP Brian Krakower sold 3,475 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.71, for a total value of $162,317.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 4,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $220,517.91. The trade was a 42.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

BJ’s Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of BJRI opened at $46.72 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $39.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.73. BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. has a 52-week low of $28.46 and a 52-week high of $47.99. The firm has a market cap of $982.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.60, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The restaurant operator reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by ($0.04). BJ’s Restaurants had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 13.48%. The business had revenue of $358.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $356.97 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BJ’s Restaurants

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in BJ’s Restaurants by 73.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 324,588 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $11,393,000 after buying an additional 137,511 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in BJ’s Restaurants by 31.7% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 19,737 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $693,000 after buying an additional 4,746 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in BJ’s Restaurants by 238.0% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 16,272 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $572,000 after buying an additional 11,458 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in BJ’s Restaurants by 7.1% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 107,143 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $3,761,000 after buying an additional 7,080 shares during the period. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its position in BJ’s Restaurants by 7.7% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 16,561 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $581,000 after buying an additional 1,178 shares during the period. 99.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BJRI. DA Davidson began coverage on BJ’s Restaurants in a research report on Friday, March 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup cut their target price on BJ’s Restaurants from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings lowered BJ’s Restaurants from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on BJ’s Restaurants from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Benchmark raised their price objective on BJ’s Restaurants from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.00.

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.