Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 301,918 Shares of BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. $BJRI

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its position in BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI) by 9.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,060,845 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 301,918 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 0.14% of BJ’s Restaurants worth $120,597,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC grew its holdings in BJ’s Restaurants by 187.7% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 699 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 456 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in BJ’s Restaurants by 39.3% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 939 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 1,618.3% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,031 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 971 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 77.5% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,317 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 1,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE grew its stake in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 14.5% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,305 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $101,000 after buying an additional 418 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.95% of the company’s stock.

BJ’s Restaurants Stock Down 1.6%

NASDAQ:BJRI opened at $41.42 on Wednesday. BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $28.46 and a 1-year high of $47.02. The company has a 50-day moving average of $37.03 and a 200 day moving average of $38.67. The firm has a market cap of $870.52 million, a PE ratio of 20.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.25.

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) last posted 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 analysts’ expectations of $356.97 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.59 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BJRI. Weiss Ratings downgraded BJ’s Restaurants from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday. Citigroup reduced 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. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $42.00 to $38.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $44.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BJ’s Restaurants has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $42.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other BJ’s Restaurants news, Director C Bradford Richmond acquired 1,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $35.10 per share, with a total value of $42,120.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 16,700 shares in the company, valued at $586,170. This represents a 7.74% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brian S. Krakower sold 2,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.03, for a total transaction of $91,078.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,062 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $177,321.86. This trade represents a 33.93% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 3,200 shares of company stock worth $110,670. Insiders own 4.90% of the company’s stock.

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.