BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the seventeen brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $94.00.

BJ has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Melius Research initiated coverage on BJ's Wholesale Club in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $90.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club from $102.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on BJ's Wholesale Club from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on BJ's Wholesale Club from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Roth Mkm upped their price target on BJ's Wholesale Club from $75.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th.

BJ's Wholesale Club Stock Down 1.7 %

BJ stock traded down $1.65 during trading on Friday, reaching $92.79. 699,052 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,502,494. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. BJ's Wholesale Club has a twelve month low of $64.06 and a twelve month high of $100.74. The firm's 50 day moving average is $91.73 and its 200 day moving average is $87.60. The firm has a market cap of $12.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.29.

BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.29. BJ's Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 35.41% and a net margin of 2.71%. The company had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.98 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that BJ's Wholesale Club will post 3.95 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at BJ's Wholesale Club

In related news, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 11,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.75, for a total value of $921,250.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 434,792 shares of the company's stock, valued at $36,413,830. This represents a 2.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 2.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BJ's Wholesale Club

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Davis Capital Management purchased a new position in BJ's Wholesale Club in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 375.6% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 371 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club during the third quarter valued at $41,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its holdings in BJ's Wholesale Club by 394.5% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 628 shares of the company's stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in BJ's Wholesale Club in the 3rd quarter worth about $55,000. 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, together with its subsidiaries, operates warehouse clubs on the eastern half of the United States. It provides groceries, general merchandise, gasoline and other ancillary services, coupon books, and promotions. The company sells its products through the websites BJs.com, BerkleyJensen.com, and Wellsleyfarms.com, as well as the mobile app.