Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) Stock

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) had its price target increased by Morgan Stanley from $90.00 to $98.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms have also commented on BJ. Roth Mkm upped their price target on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Melius Research assumed coverage on BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price target for the company. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $76.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $93.25.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Price Performance

Shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club stock opened at $98.33 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $13.04 billion, a PE ratio of 23.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 0.24. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $86.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $85.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. BJ’s Wholesale Club has a 12-month low of $63.73 and a 12-month high of $99.91.

Insider Transactions at BJ’s Wholesale Club

In related news, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 11,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.47, for a total transaction of $940,170.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 423,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,221,502.24. This trade represents a 2.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 33,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,734,820. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of BJ’s Wholesale Club

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,357,118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,184,175,000 after acquiring an additional 966,528 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 3.5% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,439,358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $531,118,000 after purchasing an additional 217,385 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 158.9% in the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 4,189,932 shares of the company’s stock worth $368,044,000 after purchasing an additional 2,571,709 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,045,590 shares of the company’s stock worth $333,680,000 after purchasing an additional 45,288 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 60.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,387,592 shares of the company’s stock valued at $196,929,000 after buying an additional 896,263 shares during the last quarter. 98.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About BJ’s Wholesale Club

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.