Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Trims Stock Position in Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its stake in Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK – Get Rating) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 21,639 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 168 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned about 0.11% of Jack in the Box worth $1,476,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ancora Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Jack in the Box in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Jack in the Box in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. US Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Jack in the Box in the fourth quarter valued at about $59,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Jack in the Box by 344.1% in the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,088 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 843 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Jack in the Box by 136.3% in the second quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,512 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 872 shares during the last quarter. 99.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jack in the Box Price Performance

JACK stock opened at $92.69 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $88.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $80.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.89 billion, a PE ratio of 13.13, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.64. Jack in the Box Inc. has a 12 month low of $54.80 and a 12 month high of $97.99.

Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 17th. The restaurant operator reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $395.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $385.44 million. Jack in the Box had a net margin of 8.61% and a negative return on equity of 17.88%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.16 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Jack in the Box Inc. will post 6.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Jack in the Box Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 30th. Jack in the Box’s payout ratio is 24.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on JACK. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Jack in the Box from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 17th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Jack in the Box from $96.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 15th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Jack in the Box from $86.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Jack in the Box from $75.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 2nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Jack in the Box from $84.00 to $99.00 in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $96.24.

Insider Activity at Jack in the Box

In related news, Director Michael W. Murphy sold 1,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.26, for a total transaction of $115,731.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 68,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,669,339.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Michael W. Murphy sold 1,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.26, for a total transaction of $115,731.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 68,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,669,339.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Chad Gretzema sold 521 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.99, for a total transaction of $51,052.79. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,071,324.67. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 6,264 shares of company stock valued at $570,006. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Jack in the Box Company Profile

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Jack in the Box, Inc engages in operating and franchising a chain of quick-service and fast-casual restaurants. It operates through the Jack in the Box Restaurant segments. The Jack in the Box Restaurant segment offers a broad selection of distinctive products including burgers like Jumbo Jack burgers, and product lines such as Buttery Jack burgers including the Brunchfast menu.