Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,830,000 shares, a decline of 14.1% from the October 15th total of 2,130,000 shares. Currently, 9.9% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 535,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on JACK shares. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Jack in the Box from $70.00 to $60.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. StockNews.com lowered Jack in the Box from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Jack in the Box from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Jack in the Box from $55.00 to $47.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Jack in the Box in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Jack in the Box has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.81.

Jack in the Box Stock Performance

NASDAQ:JACK traded up $1.85 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $46.61. The stock had a trading volume of 887,121 shares, compared to its average volume of 508,588. Jack in the Box has a twelve month low of $40.84 and a twelve month high of $86.20. The stock has a market cap of $891.65 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -23.49, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.93. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $46.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $50.44.

Jack in the Box Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.78%. Jack in the Box’s dividend payout ratio is currently -88.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Jack in the Box

In other news, CFO Brian M. Scott sold 696 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.66, for a total value of $33,867.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,201 shares in the company, valued at $642,360.66. This represents a 5.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in JACK. EntryPoint Capital LLC boosted its position in Jack in the Box by 73.2% during the first quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 866 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale bought a new stake in shares of Jack in the Box during the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. lifted its position in Jack in the Box by 172.3% during the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 2,140 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $100,000 after acquiring an additional 1,354 shares during the last quarter. MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Jack in the Box during the first quarter worth approximately $260,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Jack in the Box during the third quarter worth approximately $185,000. 99.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.