KBC Group NV Acquires 470 Shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ)

KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BJ) by 9.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,558 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 470 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club were worth $634,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,268,889 shares of the company’s stock valued at $470,775,000 after buying an additional 504,958 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 43,106 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 65.9% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 4,186,760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $477,709,000 after buying an additional 1,662,415 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,571,996 shares of the company’s stock valued at $229,808,000 after buying an additional 73,322 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in BJ’s Wholesale Club by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,486,903 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,205,000 after buying an additional 99,311 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.60% of the company’s stock.

BJ’s Wholesale Club Stock Performance

Shares of BJ stock opened at $108.25 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $14.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.45. BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $76.33 and a 52 week high of $121.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $112.84 and a 200-day moving average of $107.29.

BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.23. BJ’s Wholesale Club had a net margin of 2.76% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The company had revenue of $5.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.85 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BJ. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $127.00 price objective (up previously from $125.00) on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from $80.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $135.00 target price (up previously from $129.00) on shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of BJ’s Wholesale Club from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $115.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $116.12.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Robert W. Eddy sold 280,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.31, for a total value of $32,052,524.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 422,033 shares in the company, valued at $48,242,592.23. This trade represents a 39.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Steven L. Ortega bought 1,740 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $114.60 per share, for a total transaction of $199,404.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 8,641 shares in the company, valued at $990,258.60. This represents a 25.21% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 300,400 shares of company stock worth $34,308,420 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.40% 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.