Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Lowers Stock Position in BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lessened its holdings in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ) by 9.9% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,621,231 shares of the company’s stock after selling 178,605 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club were worth $133,719,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. purchased a new stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Davis Capital Management bought a new position in BJ’s Wholesale Club during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 375.6% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 371 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in the third quarter worth $41,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club during the second quarter valued at $45,000. 98.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Stock Up 0.3 %

BJ opened at $87.27 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $84.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $84.91. The company has a market capitalization of $11.57 billion, a PE ratio of 22.04, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.24. BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $63.08 and a 1-year high of $92.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.09. BJ’s Wholesale Club had a return on equity of 36.12% and a net margin of 2.62%. The company had revenue of $5.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.97 EPS. BJ’s Wholesale Club’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. will post 3.83 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at BJ’s Wholesale Club

In other BJ’s Wholesale Club news, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.40, for a total value of $873,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 445,792 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,395,884.80. This represents a 2.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Joseph Mcgrail sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.57, for a total value of $83,570.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,566 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,133,710.62. This represents a 6.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,818,390 over the last quarter. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective 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. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Bank of America reduced their price objective on BJ’s Wholesale Club from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $76.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Roth Mkm lifted their price target on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.94.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Profile

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.