Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $45.46, but opened at $44.02. Jack in the Box shares last traded at $43.46, with a volume of 165,135 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Jack in the Box from $83.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $57.00 price objective on shares of Jack in the Box in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. StockNews.com lowered Jack in the Box from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Jack in the Box from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Jack in the Box from $77.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Jack in the Box presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $68.94.

Jack in the Box Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $870.42 million, a PE ratio of 7.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.94. The company has a 50-day moving average of $49.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.07.

Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The restaurant operator reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.14. Jack in the Box had a negative net margin of 2.30% and a negative return on equity of 16.46%. The company had revenue of $369.17 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $371.81 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.45 earnings per share. Jack in the Box’s revenue was down 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Jack in the Box Inc. will post 6.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jack in the Box Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th were given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.92%. Jack in the Box’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.99%.

Insider Transactions at Jack in the Box

In other Jack in the Box news, CFO Brian M. Scott sold 696 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.66, for a total value of $33,867.36. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $642,360.66. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Jack in the Box

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Jack in the Box during the 3rd quarter valued at $185,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Jack in the Box by 386.9% during the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 30,190 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,538,000 after purchasing an additional 23,990 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its position in shares of Jack in the Box by 129.5% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 8,564 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $436,000 after purchasing an additional 4,832 shares during the last quarter. Clearline Capital LP grew its stake in Jack in the Box by 136.7% in the second quarter. Clearline Capital LP now owns 250,426 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $12,757,000 after purchasing an additional 144,631 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in Jack in the Box by 3.8% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 9,733 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $496,000 after buying an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. 99.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Jack in the Box

Jack in the Box Inc operates and franchises Jack in the Box and Del Taco quick-service restaurants in the United States. The company was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.