BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) EVP Gregory Lynds Sells 21,704 Shares of Stock

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI) EVP Gregory Lynds sold 21,704 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.81, for a total value of $1,493,452.24. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,770 shares in the company, valued at $1,704,423.70. This trade represents a 46.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

BJ’s Restaurants Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ BJRI traded down $0.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $69.55. 436,048 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 419,701. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The stock has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.32. BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. has a 1 year low of $28.46 and a 1 year high of $74.60. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $58.56 and a 200 day moving average of $46.28.

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $388.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $377.07 million. BJ’s Restaurants had a net margin of 2.86% and a return on equity of 12.93%. BJ’s Restaurants’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.97 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BJRI. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. DA Davidson set a $65.00 price objective on shares of BJ’s Restaurants in a report on Friday, July 31st. William Blair upgraded shares of BJ’s Restaurants from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $42.00 to $38.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of BJ’s Restaurants from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $56.88.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BJ’s Restaurants

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in BJ’s Restaurants in the 2nd quarter valued at $200,006,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in shares of BJ’s Restaurants during the second quarter worth $1,254,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of BJ’s Restaurants in the second quarter valued at about $7,516,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants in the second quarter worth about $393,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.95% 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.