Federated Hermes Inc. Makes New Investment in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new position in shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 81,570 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $3,522,000. Federated Hermes Inc. owned approximately 0.18% of Brinker International as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Brinker International by 68.9% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 946 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 386 shares in the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale acquired a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Brinker International by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 1,000 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 28,800.0% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,445 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 1,440 shares during the period. Finally, AdvisorShares Investments LLC increased its stake in Brinker International by 30.2% in the 3rd quarter. AdvisorShares Investments LLC now owns 3,501 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $111,000 after purchasing an additional 813 shares in the last quarter.

Brinker International Stock Performance

EAT opened at $48.87 on Friday. Brinker International, Inc. has a 1 year low of $28.23 and a 1 year high of $51.72. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $47.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.16 billion, a PE ratio of 14.33, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 2.46.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The restaurant operator reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.05. Brinker International had a net margin of 3.63% and a negative return on equity of 113.41%. The company had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.08 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Brinker International, Inc. will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Brinker International news, CFO Joseph G. Taylor sold 24,163 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.97, for a total value of $1,086,610.11. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 56,661 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,548,045.17. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Brinker International from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Brinker International from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Brinker International from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Brinker International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Brinker International presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $44.81.

About Brinker International

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.