Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK) Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.44

Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK) announced a quarterly dividend on Sunday, March 16th, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a dividend of 0.44 per share by the restaurant operator on Tuesday, April 8th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.47%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th.

Jack in the Box has increased its dividend by an average of 0.8% annually over the last three years. Jack in the Box has a dividend payout ratio of 30.8% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Jack in the Box to earn $5.97 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.76 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 29.5%.

Jack in the Box Trading Up 2.6 %

JACK opened at $32.15 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $606.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.49, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.95. The company’s 50 day moving average is $38.14 and its 200 day moving average is $42.96. Jack in the Box has a 12-month low of $30.76 and a 12-month high of $74.24.

Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The restaurant operator reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $469.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $470.47 million. Jack in the Box had a negative net margin of 2.34% and a negative return on equity of 15.79%. As a group, analysts predict that Jack in the Box will post 5.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Jack in the Box news, SVP Sarah L. Super sold 1,688 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.52, for a total transaction of $68,397.76. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 16,815 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $681,343.80. This trade represents a 9.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on JACK shares. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Jack in the Box in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Jack in the Box from $53.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Jack in the Box from $52.00 to $40.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Jack in the Box from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Jack in the Box in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.56.

Jack in the Box Company Profile

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.