Gregory Lynds Sells 5,537 Shares of BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) Stock

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI) EVP Gregory Lynds sold 5,537 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.76, for a total transaction of $281,058.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,474 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,359,020.24. This trade represents a 10.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

BJ’s Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of BJRI stock opened at $52.62 on Friday. BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $28.46 and a 12 month high of $53.53. The stock has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a PE ratio of 26.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $41.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.36.

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The restaurant operator reported $0.57 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $356.97 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.59 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BJ’s Restaurants

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of BJ’s Restaurants during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,514,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of BJ’s Restaurants during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,662,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 23.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,362,763 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $102,665,000 after purchasing an additional 640,648 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 886,918 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $27,078,000 after purchasing an additional 62,321 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC increased its position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 50.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC now owns 411,750 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $12,571,000 after purchasing an additional 137,283 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.95% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BJRI. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Benchmark upped their price target on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. DA Davidson began coverage on shares of BJ’s Restaurants in a research note on Friday, March 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $38.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $42.00 to $38.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.