Investors Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ)

BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock traders acquired 5,479 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 151% compared to the average volume of 2,179 call options.

BJ's Wholesale Club Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE BJ traded up $2.74 during trading on Friday, reaching $118.57. The company had a trading volume of 1,883,776 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,642,309. BJ's Wholesale Club has a 12 month low of $72.38 and a 12 month high of $121.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market cap of $15.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.50, a PEG ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.54. The company's fifty day moving average price is $110.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $98.68.

BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.07. BJ's Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 35.41% and a net margin of 2.71%. The business had revenue of $5.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.29 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that BJ's Wholesale Club will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other BJ's Wholesale Club news, SVP Joseph Mcgrail sold 2,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.74, for a total value of $251,454.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 14,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,705,097.60. The trade was a 12.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Robert Allan Steele sold 11,813 shares of BJ's Wholesale Club stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.59, for a total transaction of $1,270,960.67. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 24,351 shares in the company, valued at $2,619,924.09. This trade represents a 32.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 328,505 shares of company stock worth $37,452,686 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BJ's Wholesale Club

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BJ. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its position in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 20,003 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,787,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Lifestyle Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Lifestyle Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,329 shares of the company's stock worth $1,191,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 15,146 shares of the company's stock worth $1,353,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of BJ's Wholesale Club by 66.5% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 288 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in BJ's Wholesale Club by 2.1% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,915 shares of the company's stock worth $675,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.60% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on BJ shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on BJ's Wholesale Club from $102.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club in a research report on Friday, March 7th. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of BJ's Wholesale Club from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Citigroup upgraded BJ's Wholesale Club from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $115.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on BJ's Wholesale Club from $108.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BJ's Wholesale Club presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $110.82.

About BJ's Wholesale Club

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.