Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Upgraded by Argus to “Buy” Rating

Argus upgraded shares of Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $150.00 target price on the restaurant operator’s stock.

EAT has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Bank Of America (Bofa) raised their price objective on Brinker International from $94.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Brinker International from $70.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Citigroup increased their target price on Brinker International from $83.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Brinker International from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $70.00 to $115.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Brinker International currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.53.

Brinker International Stock Down 0.1 %

Brinker International stock opened at $137.11 on Tuesday. Brinker International has a one year low of $37.25 and a one year high of $137.86. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $119.57 and a 200 day moving average of $88.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $6.09 billion, a PE ratio of 33.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 2.51.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. Brinker International had a negative return on equity of 839.19% and a net margin of 4.11%. Brinker International’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.28 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Brinker International will post 5.43 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brinker International

In other news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total value of $386,634.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,376,774.42. The trade was a 13.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brinker International

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EAT. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Brinker International by 33.2% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 986 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $71,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC boosted its stake in Brinker International by 1,265.2% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,884 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $136,000 after purchasing an additional 1,746 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Brinker International during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $166,000. Burford Brothers Inc. acquired a new position in Brinker International during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $203,000. Finally, Parametrica Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Brinker International in the third quarter worth $209,000.

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.