Brokerages Set Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) Price Target at $86.45

Shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) have been given an average rating of “Hold” by the eighteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $86.45.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on EAT shares. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Brinker International from $69.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank Of America (Bofa) lifted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $94.00 to $97.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Argus downgraded shares of Brinker International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James cut shares of Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st.

Brinker International Stock Up 0.8 %

NYSE EAT opened at $117.45 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.32. Brinker International has a 52 week low of $34.77 and a 52 week high of $123.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 2.46. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $89.99 and a 200-day moving average of $74.85.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.26. Brinker International had a net margin of 4.11% and a negative return on equity of 839.19%. The business had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.28 earnings per share. Brinker International’s revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Brinker International will post 5.53 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Brinker International

In other news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total transaction of $386,634.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,071 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,376,774.42. This represents a 13.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brinker International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EAT. Cetera Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the first quarter valued at about $714,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Brinker International by 36.7% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 279,974 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $13,908,000 after acquiring an additional 75,225 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Brinker International by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,535,500 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $275,004,000 after acquiring an additional 135,580 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its stake in shares of Brinker International by 231.8% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,583,239 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $78,602,000 after acquiring an additional 1,106,046 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Brinker International by 1,686.8% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 192,972 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $13,969,000 after purchasing an additional 182,172 shares during the last quarter.

Brinker International Company Profile

Brinker International, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the ownership, development, operation, and franchising of casual dining restaurants in the United States and internationally. It operates and franchises Chili's Grill & Bar and Maggiano's Little Italy restaurant brands.