Clearbridge Investments LLC Lowers Stock Position in BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ)

Clearbridge Investments LLC trimmed its position in BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ) by 12.3% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,651,927 shares of the company’s stock after selling 372,792 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club were worth $232,945,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 58.2% in the fourth quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 24,683 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,645,000 after acquiring an additional 9,084 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 58,995 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,933,000 after buying an additional 570 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia purchased a new stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $403,000. KBC Group NV bought a new stake in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $161,000. Finally, Eisler Capital UK Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in the fourth quarter worth $657,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America cut their price objective on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised BJ’s Wholesale Club from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $76.00 to $78.00 in a report on Monday, August 26th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Melius Research started coverage on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their price objective on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BJ’s Wholesale Club presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.31.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BJ opened at $84.48 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $63.08 and a 12 month high of $92.37. The company has a market capitalization of $11.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.94, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.24. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $83.02 and its 200 day moving average is $82.46.

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.09. BJ’s Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 36.12% and a net margin of 2.62%. The firm had revenue of $5.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.97 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. will post 3.83 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at BJ’s Wholesale Club

In other news, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 11,000 shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.60, for a total transaction of $963,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 456,792 shares in the company, valued at $40,014,979.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 11,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.60, for a total transaction of $963,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 456,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $40,014,979.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Joseph Mcgrail sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.57, for a total value of $83,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 13,566 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,133,710.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 68,438 shares of company stock valued at $6,025,038 in the last quarter. 2.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.