BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) Issues Earnings Results

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The restaurant operator reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.16, FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $358.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $346.68 million. BJ’s Restaurants had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 2.86%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.04 earnings per share.

Here are the key takeaways from BJ’s Restaurants’ conference call:

• Strong sales and traffic growth: Third-quarter comparable sales rose 8.1%, driven by 8.3% traffic growth, marking the ninth consecutive quarter of sales and traffic gains. Revenue increased 8.6% to $358.6 million, with growth across days, dayparts, revenue centers, and regions.
• Profitability improved, and full-year guidance was raised: Restaurant-level operating margin expanded 220 basis points to 14.7%, while adjusted EBITDA increased $10.3 million to $31.4 million. BJ’s raised its 2026 comparable-sales, restaurant-level operating profit, and adjusted EBITDA outlook, while lowering expected capital expenditures.
• Check trends and menu initiatives showed progress: Average check declined just 0.2%, improving from a 1.8% decline in Q2; management attributed the sequential improvement partly to menu renovations and more balanced growth drivers. The company said revamped pizza, burger, and chicken sandwich offerings are generating higher sales and margins.
• Q4 outlook includes a calendar headwind: Management said results to date are in line with expectations, but projected an approximately 100-basis-point Q4 comparable-sales headwind from holiday timing. It also expects occupancy and operating expenses to rise to about 23% of revenue, citing marketing, insurance, and repair and maintenance costs.
• Balance sheet strengthened as growth investment continues: BJ’s repaid $28 million of debt during the quarter and ended with approximately $4 million of net debt, down from $61 million at the start of the year. The company plans to open one restaurant in Q4 and one in Q1, with roughly four or five openings targeted for 2027.

BJ’s Restaurants Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BJRI opened at $58.35 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.21, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.46. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $60.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.23. BJ’s Restaurants has a twelve month low of $33.36 and a twelve month high of $74.60.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BJRI has been the topic of a number of research reports. William Blair upgraded BJ’s Restaurants from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. DA Davidson set a $65.00 target price on BJ’s Restaurants in a report on Friday, July 31st. Benchmark boosted their target price on BJ’s Restaurants from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of BJ’s Restaurants from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $62.00.

Key Headlines Impacting BJ’s Restaurants

Here are the key news stories impacting BJ’s Restaurants this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 revenue rose 8.6% year over year to $358.6 million, topping estimates of about $346.7 million. Earnings were $0.33 per share, compared with $0.04 a year earlier and analyst estimates ranging from $0.14 to $0.17. BJ’s Restaurants fiscal third-quarter results
• Positive Sentiment: Comparable restaurant sales increased 8.1%, and BJ’s raised its fiscal 2026 financial guidance, signaling confidence in continued performance. BJ’s Restaurants fiscal third-quarter results
• Neutral Sentiment: BJ’s introduced a seasonal holiday menu, including new steakhouse-inspired dishes and a returning Biscoff Pizookie; the customer and sales impact remains uncertain. BJ’s holiday menu announcement
• Negative Sentiment: The stock has declined despite the upbeat results. The provided coverage offers no clear negative operating news or specific catalyst explaining the market reaction.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Noah Elbogen sold 7,535 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.14, for a total value of $528,504.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 71,655 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,025,881.70. This represents a 9.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director C Richmond acquired 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $61.05 per share, for a total transaction of $30,525.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 36,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,228,325. This trade represents a 1.39% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About BJ’s Restaurants

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc (NASDAQ: BJRI) operates and develops casual dining restaurants under the BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse brand. Its restaurants offer a broad menu centered on deep-dish pizza, along with appetizers, salads, sandwiches, burgers, entrees, desserts and other American-style dishes.

The company is also known for producing and serving craft beer, including its proprietary BJ’s beers, at many of its locations. Its restaurants typically combine full-service dining with a brewery-inspired atmosphere and offer dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering services, depending on the location.

BJ’s traces its origins to 1978, when the first restaurant opened in Southern California.