Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK) Stock Price Up 5% After Dividend Announcement

Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK)’s stock price shot up 5% during trading on Thursday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $36.42 and last traded at $36.79. 382,505 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 32% from the average session volume of 566,355 shares. The stock had previously closed at $35.03.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.80%. Jack in the Box’s dividend payout ratio is presently -82.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Jack in the Box from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. TD Securities reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Jack in the Box in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Jack in the Box in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Jack in the Box from $55.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of Jack in the Box from $51.00 to $46.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.56.

Jack in the Box Stock Up 4.8 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $39.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.96. The firm has a market cap of $692.09 million, a PE ratio of -18.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.95.

Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The restaurant operator reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $469.44 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $470.47 million. Jack in the Box had a negative net margin of 2.34% and a negative return on equity of 15.79%. Research analysts forecast that Jack in the Box Inc. will post 5.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Jack in the Box

In related news, SVP Sarah L. Super sold 1,688 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.52, for a total transaction of $68,397.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 16,815 shares in the company, valued at approximately $681,343.80. The trade was a 9.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Jack in the Box

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Aigen Investment Management LP raised its stake in Jack in the Box by 238.5% during the 3rd quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 21,869 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,018,000 after acquiring an additional 15,409 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in Jack in the Box by 70.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 216,117 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $10,060,000 after purchasing an additional 89,649 shares during the period. Biglari Sardar boosted its stake in shares of Jack in the Box by 14.2% in the third quarter. Biglari Sardar now owns 96,717 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $4,501,000 after buying an additional 12,000 shares in the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Jack in the Box in the third quarter worth $1,475,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Jack in the Box by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 738,297 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $30,244,000 after purchasing an additional 25,881 shares in the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jack in the Box Company Profile

Jack in the Box Inc operates and franchises Jack in the Box and Del Taco quick-service restaurants in the United States. The company was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.