Meros Investment Management LP Purchases Shares of 143,493 BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. $BJRI

Meros Investment Management LP acquired a new position in BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 143,493 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $8,715,047,000. BJ’s Restaurants makes up 2.8% of Meros Investment Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of BJRI. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 15.6% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 37,189 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,274,000 after acquiring an additional 5,013 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new position in shares of BJ’s Restaurants during the 1st quarter valued at $291,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of BJ’s Restaurants by 29.7% during the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 17,662 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $788,000 after purchasing an additional 4,045 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in BJ’s Restaurants by 22.5% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 291,957 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $13,021,000 after purchasing an additional 53,574 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in BJ’s Restaurants by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 71,617 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $3,194,000 after purchasing an additional 637 shares during the period. 99.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on BJRI shares. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Citigroup upped their price target on BJ’s Restaurants from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. William Blair upgraded BJ’s Restaurants from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Zacks Research raised BJ’s Restaurants from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised BJ’s Restaurants from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $56.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at BJ’s Restaurants

In other news, EVP Brian S. Krakower sold 7,341 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.17, for a total value of $405,002.97. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 4,721 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $260,457.57. This represents a 60.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Gregory S. Lynds sold 25,350 shares of BJ’s Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.47, for a total transaction of $1,710,364.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,474 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,135,600.78. The trade was a 35.29% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 131,601 shares of company stock valued at $8,033,014. Corporate insiders own 2.40% of the company’s stock.

BJ’s Restaurants Price Performance

NASDAQ BJRI opened at $65.34 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $63.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.94, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.22. BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $28.46 and a 1-year high of $74.60.

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.04. BJ’s Restaurants had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 2.86%.The company had revenue of $388.89 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $377.07 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.97 EPS. BJ’s Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.37 earnings per share for the current year.

About BJ’s Restaurants

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc is a publicly traded casual dining chain known for its deep‐dish pizzas, California‐style thin crust offerings and in‐house craft beer selections. Operating under the BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse brand, the company combines a microbrewery concept with full‐service dining, offering an extensive menu that includes appetizers, salads, pasta dishes, sandwiches and the signature Pizookie dessert.

Founded in 1978 in Orange County, California, BJ’s Restaurants began as BJ’s Chicago Pizzeria, bringing a Chicago‐style pizza experience to the West Coast.