BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) Stock Rating Upgraded by Citigroup

Citigroup upgraded shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Thursday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have $130.00 price objective on the stock, up from their previous price objective of $115.00.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on BJ. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research note on Friday, March 7th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $110.82.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Trading Up 3.2 %

Shares of BJ opened at $118.65 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.62 billion, a PE ratio of 28.52, a P/E/G ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.54. The company’s fifty day moving average is $106.51 and its 200 day moving average is $95.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a current ratio of 0.76. BJ’s Wholesale Club has a fifty-two week low of $71.81 and a fifty-two week high of $118.99.

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.29 billion. BJ’s Wholesale Club had a net margin of 2.71% and a return on equity of 35.41%. Sell-side analysts expect that BJ’s Wholesale Club will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other BJ’s Wholesale Club news, Director Robert Allan Steele sold 11,813 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.59, for a total transaction of $1,270,960.67. Following the sale, the director now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP William C. Werner sold 14,192 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.64, for a total value of $1,669,546.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,071,933.32. This trade represents a 35.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 46,005 shares of company stock valued at $5,148,708. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,330,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,218,000 after purchasing an additional 245,731 shares during the period. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club during the third quarter valued at $828,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 129.0% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 38,984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,215,000 after buying an additional 21,957 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 278.6% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 53,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,822,000 after purchasing an additional 39,713 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club during the 4th quarter worth approximately $307,000. 98.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.