Dana Cohen’s Rutabaga Capital Boosted in $JAX

Dana Cohen’s Rutabaga Capital boosted its passive stake in J. Alexander’s Corporation (JAX) to 10.17%. Rutabaga Capital reported 609,728 shares in its 13G on October 20th, up from its 209,721 shares position in the second quarter. This is the only transaction between Rutabaga Capital and JAX in the third quarter. JAX had a good path in the first half of 2011. The stock experienced large fluctuation in August, and now it’s wavering with large price volatility and small trading volume. JAX is now priced at $5.82.

According to Insider Monkey’s hedge fund tracking list, except Rutabaga Capital, Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies was the only hedge fund that had JAX in its portfolio. The firm had about 58 thousand shares, up by 1% from Q1.

Rutabaga Capital Management Inc. is a private money manager located in Boston, MA.  Based on a value discipline, the management team mainly seeks unloved, underfollowed companies in run-of-the-mill businesses that are experiencing difficult conditions.  The managers are big believers in the regression to the mean concept, and they searches out small companies whose margins have temporarily deteriorated for reasons.

J. Alexander’s Corporation is a full-service, casual dining restaurant company located in Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee and Texas. The company through its 33 restaurants offers a traditional American menu that features prime rib of beef; hardwood-grilled steaks, seafood and chicken, pasta, salads and soups, assorted sandwiches, appetizers and desserts, and a full-service bar. The company’s alcoholic beverage sales accounted for 17.3% of its net sales in 2010. The company was founded in 1970 and is based in Nashville, Tennessee.