BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) Shares Pass Above 200-Day Moving Average of $34.53

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI)’s share price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $34.53 and traded as high as $35.48. BJ’s Restaurants shares last traded at $35.47, with a volume of 413,343 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on BJRI shares. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of BJ’s Restaurants in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Benchmark lifted their price objective on BJ’s Restaurants from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.30.

BJ’s Restaurants Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $829.29 million, a P/E ratio of 35.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 2.13. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $34.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $34.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.17. BJ’s Restaurants had a return on equity of 6.51% and a net margin of 1.80%. The business had revenue of $337.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $335.35 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.15 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. will post 1.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Brian S. Krakower sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.56, for a total value of $56,896.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $272,105.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 4.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BJ’s Restaurants

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BJRI. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new stake in BJ’s Restaurants during the 1st quarter valued at $45,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 141.0% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,270 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 743 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of BJ’s Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth about $95,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in BJ’s Restaurants by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 5,545 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $200,000 after purchasing an additional 673 shares during the period. Finally, Diversified Trust Co bought a new position in BJ’s Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $211,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.95% of the company’s stock.

About BJ’s Restaurants

BJ's Restaurants, Inc owns and operates casual dining restaurants in the United States. Its restaurants offer pizzas, craft and other beers, appetizers, entrées, pastas, sandwiches, specialty salads, and desserts. The company was formerly known as Chicago Pizza & Brewery, Inc and changed its name to BJ's Restaurants, Inc in August 2004.