Short Interest in Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK) Increases By 11.6%

Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,890,000 shares, a growth of 11.6% from the January 15th total of 2,590,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 609,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.7 days. Approximately 16.1% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Jack in the Box Price Performance

NASDAQ:JACK traded down $0.72 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $39.18. 536,546 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 497,542. The business has a 50 day moving average of $40.57 and a 200 day moving average of $45.24. Jack in the Box has a 1-year low of $36.36 and a 1-year high of $77.50. The company has a market capitalization of $738.93 million, a P/E ratio of -20.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.94.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Jack in the Box news, SVP Sarah L. Super sold 1,688 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at $681,343.80. This trade represents a 9.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold 2,190 shares of company stock valued at $92,961 in the last three months. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Jack in the Box

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its position in shares of Jack in the Box by 96.7% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 899 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 442 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale acquired a new stake in Jack in the Box during the third quarter worth about $41,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Jack in the Box by 229.7% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,055 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 735 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its position 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 buying an additional 616 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 978 shares during the period. 99.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on JACK. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Jack in the Box from $52.00 to $40.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Jack in the Box in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Jack in the Box from $53.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Guggenheim reduced their price target on Jack in the Box from $95.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on Jack in the Box from $60.00 to $52.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $54.50.

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.