Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Stock Bumped Down to “Hold” by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Tuesday morning,Zacks reports.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Seaport Research Partners initiated coverage on Brinker International in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $230.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Brinker International from $260.00 to $262.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Weiss Ratings cut Brinker International from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Brinker International from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $270.00 to $260.00 in a report on Friday, October 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Brinker International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $249.80.

Brinker International Stock Performance

Shares of EAT stock opened at $220.66 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $207.25 and its 200 day moving average is $175.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.42, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.37. Brinker International has a 12 month low of $100.30 and a 12 month high of $254.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The restaurant operator reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.45 by $0.32. Brinker International had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 125.65%. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.17 EPS. Brinker International’s revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Brinker International will post 13.70 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Brinker International

In other Brinker International news, EVP George S. Felix sold 14,349 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.47, for a total value of $3,407,457.03. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,293 shares in the company, valued at $1,494,398.71. This represents a 69.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Aaron M. White sold 16,220 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.22, for a total transaction of $3,831,488.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,756 shares in the company, valued at $10,099,822.32. This represents a 27.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 213,694 shares of company stock valued at $50,383,890 in the last quarter. 1.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Brinker International by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,532 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $296,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,544 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $299,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Brinker International by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC now owns 20,669 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,472,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Brinker International by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 2,078 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000.

Brinker International Company Profile

Brinker International, Inc is a casual-dining restaurant company that owns, operates and franchises restaurants in the United States and select international markets. The company is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and serves customers through company-operated and franchised locations.

Brinker’s principal brands are Chili’s Grill & Bar and Maggiano’s Little Italy. Chili’s offers a broad menu of burgers, steaks, ribs, fajitas, Tex-Mex dishes, salads and beverages in a full-service, casual setting.