Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC Acquires 1,550,364 Shares of Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN)

Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN) by 8,666.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,568,253 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,550,364 shares during the period. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC’s holdings in Bloomin’ Brands were worth $19,148,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Bloomin’ Brands in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Bloomin’ Brands during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bloomin’ Brands in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Bloomin’ Brands by 606.6% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,890 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 4,198 shares during the period. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Bloomin’ Brands during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $140,000.

Bloomin’ Brands Stock Down 4.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BLMN opened at $7.92 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.46. The business’s 50 day moving average is $8.24 and its 200 day moving average is $11.50. The stock has a market cap of $672.65 million, a P/E ratio of -71.99 and a beta of 1.76. Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. has a 52-week low of $6.09 and a 52-week high of $26.72.

Bloomin’ Brands Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.58%. Bloomin’ Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently -40.27%.

Insider Activity at Bloomin’ Brands

In other Bloomin’ Brands news, EVP Patrick M. Hafner sold 9,555 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.32, for a total transaction of $79,497.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on BLMN shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Bloomin’ Brands from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Bank of America downgraded shares of Bloomin’ Brands from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $18.00 to $13.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Bloomin’ Brands from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $14.30.

Bloomin’ Brands Company Profile

Bloomin’ Brands, Inc engages in the acquisition, operation, design, and development of restaurant concepts. It operates through the U.S. and International geographical segments. The U.S. segment operates in the USA and Puerto Rico. The International segment operates in Brazil, South Korea, Hong Kong, and China.