Wells Fargo & Company Boosts Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Price Target to $175.00

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) had its price objective raised by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $145.00 to $175.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target points to a potential downside of 3.83% from the company’s previous close.

EAT has been the subject of several other reports. Wedbush boosted their target price on Brinker International from $140.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Bank Of America (Bofa) upped their price objective on Brinker International from $94.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Brinker International from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Brinker International from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Northcoast Research raised Brinker International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $135.48.

Brinker International Trading Down 0.3 %

EAT opened at $181.97 on Thursday. Brinker International has a 12 month low of $40.50 and a 12 month high of $187.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.54, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 2.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $139.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $102.05.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $1.43. Brinker International had a return on equity of 16,722.22% and a net margin of 5.45%. Sell-side analysts expect that Brinker International will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brinker International

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of EAT. Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Brinker International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $81,888,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Brinker International by 2,612.4% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 588,594 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $77,865,000 after buying an additional 566,894 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its stake in shares of Brinker International by 1,145.2% during the 4th quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 416,044 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $55,038,000 after buying an additional 382,633 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 55.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 618,728 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $47,351,000 after acquiring an additional 219,836 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Brinker International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $14,611,000.

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.