Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Price Target Lowered to $170.00 at Citigroup

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) had its price objective reduced by research analysts at Citigroup from $185.00 to $170.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Citigroup’s target price suggests a potential upside of 19.82% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on EAT. Northcoast Research raised Brinker International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Brinker International from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $70.00 to $115.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. KeyCorp lowered Brinker International from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating and set a $115.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Brinker International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Brinker International presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $139.39.

Brinker International Price Performance

Shares of EAT stock traded down $4.41 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $141.88. The company had a trading volume of 496,617 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,453,982. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.48, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 2.21. Brinker International has a 12 month low of $43.37 and a 12 month high of $192.22. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $152.97 and its 200 day moving average is $131.44.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $1.43. Brinker International had a return on equity of 879.47% and a net margin of 5.45%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Brinker International will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.90, for a total value of $1,409,250.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 34,252 shares in the company, valued at $6,435,950.80. This represents a 17.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Cindy L. Davis sold 5,802 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.86, for a total transaction of $1,089,963.72. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,107 shares in the company, valued at $2,086,561.02. This represents a 34.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,802 shares of company stock valued at $3,752,464. 1.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Brinker International

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EAT. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in shares of Brinker International by 0.6% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 121,505 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $18,110,000 after purchasing an additional 691 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Brinker International by 37,668.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 116,706 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $17,395,000 after purchasing an additional 116,397 shares in the last quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. bought a new position in shares of Brinker International during the first quarter worth about $202,000. 111 Capital acquired a new position in Brinker International in the fourth quarter worth about $584,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Brinker International by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,554 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $735,000 after buying an additional 730 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.