WINTON GROUP Ltd Makes New $351,000 Investment in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,655 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $351,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Brinker International by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 998,278 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $76,413,000 after acquiring an additional 8,105 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Brinker International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $81,888,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Brinker International by 55.1% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 618,728 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $47,351,000 after purchasing an additional 219,836 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 2,612.4% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 588,594 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $77,865,000 after purchasing an additional 566,894 shares during the period. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its position in Brinker International by 1,145.2% in the 4th quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 416,044 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $55,038,000 after buying an additional 382,633 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wedbush upped their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $140.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Argus upgraded Brinker International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Brinker International from $162.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Brinker International from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Brinker International currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $140.18.

Brinker International Stock Down 4.4 %

EAT stock opened at $147.58 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96, a current ratio of 0.33 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $156.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $127.46. Brinker International, Inc. has a 12 month low of $43.37 and a 12 month high of $192.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.55 billion, a PE ratio of 25.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 2.56.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts expect that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.