BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI) Shares Up 7% After Analyst Upgrade

Posted by Brenda Bartman on Jul 17th, 2026

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. (NASDAQ:BJRI – Get Free Report) shares traded up 7% during trading on Friday after William Blair upgraded the stock from a market perform rating to an outperform rating. The stock traded as high as $65.52 and last traded at $66.85. Approximately 175,849 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 56% from the average session volume of 395,802 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.47.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Barclays dropped their price objective on BJ’s Restaurants from $42.00 to $38.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Benchmark raised their price target on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $50.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $44.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of BJ’s Restaurants from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $44.25.

View Our Latest Analysis on BJRI

Insider Transactions at BJ’s Restaurants

In related news, EVP Brian S. Krakower sold 7,341 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.17, for a total value of $405,002.97. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,721 shares in the company, valued at $260,457.57. This trade represents a 60.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Noah A. Elbogen sold 4,652 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total value of $251,208.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 76,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,116,690. This trade represents a 5.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 63,817 shares of company stock worth $3,384,688 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 2.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BJ’s Restaurants

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. WINTON GROUP Ltd increased its holdings in BJ’s Restaurants by 114.7% in the 4th quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 74,958 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,953,000 after buying an additional 40,037 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in BJ’s Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,148,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in BJ’s Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $5,724,000. Burney Co. purchased a new stake in shares of BJ’s Restaurants in the 1st quarter valued at $3,990,000. Finally, Lisanti Capital Growth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BJ’s Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at $3,107,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.95% of the company’s stock.

BJ’s Restaurants Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.31. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $51.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

BJ’s Restaurants (NASDAQ:BJRI – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The restaurant operator reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.61 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $358.12 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $356.97 million. BJ’s Restaurants had a return on equity of 13.48% and a net margin of 3.15%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.59 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that BJ’s Restaurants, Inc. will post 2.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About BJ’s Restaurants

(Get Free Report)

BJ’s Restaurants, Inc is a publicly traded casual dining chain known for its deep‐dish pizzas, California‐style thin crust offerings and in‐house craft beer selections. Operating under the BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse brand, the company combines a microbrewery concept with full‐service dining, offering an extensive menu that includes appetizers, salads, pasta dishes, sandwiches and the signature Pizookie dessert.

Founded in 1978 in Orange County, California, BJ’s Restaurants began as BJ’s Chicago Pizzeria, bringing a Chicago‐style pizza experience to the West Coast.