Ritholtz Wealth Management Raises Stock Position in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its position in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) by 46.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,942 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,359 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Brinker International were worth $2,972,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its holdings in Brinker International by 20.8% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 4,248 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $562,000 after acquiring an additional 730 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Brinker International by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 3,274 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $433,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 287,456 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $38,028,000 after purchasing an additional 14,634 shares during the period. Highview Capital Management LLC DE grew its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 13,557 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,793,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Finally, Ifrah Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the 4th quarter worth about $280,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EAT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Brinker International from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $185.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Brinker International from $165.00 to $155.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $141.14.

Insider Transactions at Brinker International

In other news, Director Joseph Michael Depinto sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.36, for a total transaction of $1,703,600.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 99,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,916,236.92. This trade represents a 9.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 2,350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.91, for a total value of $319,388.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 20,591 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,798,522.81. This trade represents a 10.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 13,127 shares of company stock valued at $2,128,062. Insiders own 1.72% of the company’s stock.

Brinker International Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE:EAT opened at $174.14 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $153.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $149.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96. Brinker International, Inc. has a 12-month low of $56.27 and a 12-month high of $192.22. The firm has a market cap of $7.74 billion, a PE ratio of 30.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.71.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.18. Brinker International had a return on equity of 879.47% and a net margin of 5.45%. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.24 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 27.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brinker International 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.