BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) Raised to Buy at Citigroup

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) was upgraded by analysts at Citigroup from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has a $130.00 target price on the stock, up from their prior target price of $115.00. Citigroup’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 12.52% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. UBS Group upped their price target on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $108.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $98.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $87.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, BJ’s Wholesale Club currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.82.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BJ opened at $115.54 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $106.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $95.94. The company has a market capitalization of $15.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.77, a P/E/G ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.54. BJ’s Wholesale Club has a fifty-two week low of $71.81 and a fifty-two week high of $120.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.14.

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.07. BJ’s Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 35.41% and a net margin of 2.71%. The business had revenue of $5.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.29 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that BJ’s Wholesale Club will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert Allan Steele sold 11,813 shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.59, for a total value of $1,270,960.67. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 24,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,619,924.09. This trade represents a 32.67 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP William C. Werner sold 14,192 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.64, for a total transaction of $1,669,546.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,071,933.32. This trade represents a 35.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 46,005 shares of company stock valued at $5,148,708 in the last ninety days. 2.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BJ’s Wholesale Club

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,268,889 shares of the company’s stock worth $470,775,000 after purchasing an additional 504,958 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 4,331,379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $387,009,000 after buying an additional 43,106 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 1.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,045,590 shares of the company’s stock worth $333,680,000 after buying an additional 45,288 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,571,996 shares of the company’s stock valued at $229,808,000 after buying an additional 73,322 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,486,903 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,205,000 after acquiring an additional 99,311 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.60% of the company’s stock.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Company Profile

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc engages in the operation of membership warehouse clubs. Its product categories include grocery, household and pet, television and electronics, furniture, computer and tablets, patio and outdoor living, lawn and garden, baby and kids, toys, home, health and beauty, appliances, and jewelry.