Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK) Trading Down 4.9% After Analyst Downgrade

Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK) traded down 4.9% during trading on Tuesday after Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on the stock from $40.00 to $35.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a hold rating on the stock. Jack in the Box traded as low as $29.20 and last traded at $29.13. 410,300 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 30% from the average session volume of 588,256 shares. The stock had previously closed at $30.62.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Jack in the Box in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Jack in the Box from $55.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays cut their target price on Jack in the Box from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com raised Jack in the Box from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Jack in the Box from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Jack in the Box currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jack in the Box

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Jack in the Box in the fourth quarter worth $1,945,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Jack in the Box during the 4th quarter worth $427,000. PVG Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in Jack in the Box during the 4th quarter worth about $238,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in Jack in the Box during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Novem Group acquired a new stake in Jack in the Box in the 4th quarter valued at about $212,000. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Jack in the Box Trading Down 1.7 %

The firm has a market cap of $534.81 million, a PE ratio of -14.54, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.95. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $36.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.15.

Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The restaurant operator reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.21. Jack in the Box had a negative net margin of 2.34% and a negative return on equity of 15.79%. The company had revenue of $469.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $470.47 million. Equities analysts forecast that Jack in the Box Inc. will post 5.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jack in the Box Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.21%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. Jack in the Box’s dividend payout ratio is presently -82.63%.

About Jack in the Box

Jack in the Box Inc operates and franchises Jack in the Box and Del Taco quick-service restaurants in the United States. The company was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.