Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the sixteen research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $63.53.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Brinker International from $48.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Brinker International from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Brinker International from $53.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. KeyCorp raised shares of Brinker International from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $72.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Brinker International from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th.

Brinker International Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of Brinker International stock opened at $76.65 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 2.52. Brinker International has a 52-week low of $28.23 and a 52-week high of $78.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 19.96, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.38. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $68.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $61.90.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 14th. The restaurant operator reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. Brinker International had a net margin of 3.52% and a negative return on equity of 274.62%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Brinker International will post 4.64 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brinker International

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Boston Partners lifted its position in Brinker International by 231.8% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,583,239 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $78,602,000 after buying an additional 1,106,046 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised its stake in shares of Brinker International by 13,850.1% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,057,416 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $76,546,000 after acquiring an additional 1,049,836 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Brinker International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $12,853,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Brinker International by 31.7% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 942,510 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $68,228,000 after purchasing an additional 227,047 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 1,686.8% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 192,972 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $13,969,000 after purchasing an additional 182,172 shares during the last quarter.

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.