Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK) Stock Price Down 6.6% – Here’s Why

Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK)’s stock price traded down 6.6% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $35.36 and last traded at $34.95. 138,051 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 569,393 shares. The stock had previously closed at $37.42.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on JACK shares. Northcoast Research downgraded Jack in the Box from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Jack in the Box from $53.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. TD Securities reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of Jack in the Box in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of 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. Finally, Wedbush downgraded Jack in the Box from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $50.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Friday, February 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.56.

Jack in the Box Trading Down 8.0 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $39.01 and a 200 day moving average of $43.60. The firm has a market cap of $649.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.95.

Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The restaurant operator reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $470.47 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Jack in the Box Inc. will post 5.33 EPS 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. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.11%. Jack in the Box’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -82.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Jack in the Box

In related news, SVP Sarah L. Super sold 1,688 shares of Jack in the Box stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.52, for a total value of $68,397.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 16,815 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $681,343.80. The trade was a 9.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of JACK. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in shares of Jack in the Box by 96.7% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 899 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 442 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in Jack in the Box during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Jack in the Box by 229.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,055 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 735 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Jack in the Box by 99.5% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,235 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 616 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Jack in the Box by 168.6% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,558 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 978 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.79% of the company’s stock.

Jack in the Box Company Profile

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.