Jack In The Box (NASDAQ:JACK) Raised to Hold at Zacks Research

Jack In The Box (NASDAQ:JACK) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Jack In The Box from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 3rd. Barclays upped their price target on Jack In The Box from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Jack In The Box from $21.00 to $16.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Jack In The Box from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Jack In The Box from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Jack In The Box has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $24.67.

Jack In The Box Trading Down 10.1%

NASDAQ JACK opened at $20.67 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $390.66 million, a PE ratio of -4.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.13. Jack In The Box has a 1-year low of $13.99 and a 1-year high of $44.15. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $19.33 and a 200-day moving average of $19.21.

Jack In The Box (NASDAQ:JACK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 19th. The restaurant operator reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.46 by ($0.16). Jack In The Box had a negative return on equity of 9.23% and a negative net margin of 5.51%.The company had revenue of $326.19 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $324.23 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.16 earnings per share. Jack In The Box’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Jack In The Box will post 5.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Jack In The Box news, SVP Carl Mount sold 1,393 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.00, for a total value of $26,467.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $366,700. This represents a 6.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Sarah L. Super sold 2,114 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.08, for a total transaction of $40,335.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 32,640 shares in the company, valued at approximately $622,771.20. This trade represents a 6.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 9,466 shares of company stock worth $181,110 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of JACK. Callodine Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Jack In The Box by 4.7% during the third quarter. Callodine Capital Management LP now owns 1,695,504 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $33,520,000 after acquiring an additional 75,572 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Jack In The Box by 192.9% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 744,141 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $14,712,000 after purchasing an additional 490,071 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Jack In The Box by 45.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 389,327 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $7,697,000 after purchasing an additional 121,752 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Jack In The Box by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 312,842 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $6,185,000 after buying an additional 17,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Jack In The Box by 519.5% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 241,444 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $4,773,000 after buying an additional 202,469 shares during the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jack In The Box Company Profile

Jack in the Box (NASDAQ: JACK) is a publicly traded quick-service restaurant company best known for its Jack in the Box brand of fast-food restaurants. Founded in 1951 by Robert O. Peterson and headquartered in San Diego, California, the company has operated for decades as a franchisor and operator of drive-thru and dine-in restaurants. Its business model combines company-owned locations with franchise arrangements, and the company focuses on building brand recognition through menu innovation, marketing and service convenience.

The company’s core offerings center on a broad fast-food menu that includes hamburgers (notably the Jumbo Jack), tacos, breakfast items, sandwiches, salads, sides and specialty limited-time items.