Jack in the Box Inc. Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.44 (NASDAQ:JACK)

Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 26th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a dividend of 0.44 per share by the restaurant operator on Tuesday, April 8th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.68%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th.

Jack in the Box has increased its dividend by an average of 0.8% per year over the last three years. Jack in the Box has a dividend payout ratio of 29.8% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Jack in the Box to earn $5.97 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.76 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 29.5%.

Jack in the Box Stock Up 10.7 %

JACK traded up $3.63 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $37.58. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,925,267 shares, compared to its average volume of 645,809. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $39.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.61. Jack in the Box has a 12 month low of $32.69 and a 12 month high of $76.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $708.68 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.94.

Jack in the Box (NASDAQ:JACK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The restaurant operator reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.21. Jack in the Box had a negative return on equity of 15.79% and a negative net margin of 2.34%. The business had revenue of $469.44 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $470.47 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Jack in the Box will post 5.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on JACK. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on Jack in the Box from $95.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. TD Securities reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Jack in the Box in a research note on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus dropped 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 report on Friday, January 10th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Jack in the Box from $56.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of Jack in the Box from $60.00 to $52.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Jack in the Box currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.88.

Insider Activity at Jack in the Box

In related news, SVP Sarah L. Super sold 1,688 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.52, for a total transaction of $68,397.76. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 16,815 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $681,343.80. This represents a 9.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders have sold 2,190 shares of company stock worth $92,961. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

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.