BJ’s Wholesale Club Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:BJ)

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Traders purchased 3,079 put options on the company. This is an increase of 87% compared to the average daily volume of 1,647 put options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BJ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $75.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $87.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $101.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $100.12.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Trading Up 0.8 %

BJ traded up $0.88 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $113.21. 925,167 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,669,295. BJ’s Wholesale Club has a 1-year low of $71.81 and a 1-year high of $113.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $98.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $91.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.13, a P/E/G ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.28.

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.29 billion. BJ’s Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 35.41% and a net margin of 2.71%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that BJ’s Wholesale Club will post 3.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BJ’s Wholesale Club

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BJ. Menard Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 2,965 shares of the company’s stock valued at $265,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 4,331,379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $387,009,000 after acquiring an additional 43,106 shares during the period. GTS Securities LLC lifted its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 188.8% during the fourth quarter. GTS Securities LLC now owns 5,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $508,000 after purchasing an additional 12,084 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 11.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 505,162 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,136,000 after acquiring an additional 52,340 shares during the period. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club during the fourth quarter worth $1,880,000. Institutional investors own 98.60% of the company’s stock.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Company Profile

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc engages in the operation of membership warehouse clubs. Its product categories include grocery, household and pet, television and electronics, furniture, computer and tablets, patio and outdoor living, lawn and garden, baby and kids, toys, home, health and beauty, appliances, and jewelry.