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

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) had its price objective increased by Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $115.00 in a report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $108.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $101.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $75.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target 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. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BJ’s Wholesale Club currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $104.65.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Trading Up 3.1 %

Shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club stock opened at $115.85 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.14. BJ’s Wholesale Club has a 1-year low of $71.81 and a 1-year high of $116.00. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $98.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $91.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.30 billion, a PE ratio of 27.85, a P/E/G ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.28.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BJ’s Wholesale Club

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BJ. Menard Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 2,965 shares of the company’s stock worth $265,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 worth $387,009,000 after purchasing an additional 43,106 shares during the period. GTS Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 188.8% in the 4th quarter. GTS Securities LLC now owns 5,684 shares of the company’s stock worth $508,000 after purchasing an additional 12,084 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club by 11.6% in 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 worth $45,136,000 after purchasing an additional 52,340 shares during the period. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,880,000. 98.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About BJ’s Wholesale Club

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.