Northcoast Research Upgrades Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) to Buy

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) was upgraded by investment analysts at Northcoast Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has a $215.00 price objective on the restaurant operator’s stock. Northcoast Research’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 18.15% from the stock’s previous close.

EAT has been the subject of several other reports. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Brinker International in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $83.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays raised their target price on Brinker International from $143.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Brinker International from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $70.00 to $115.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Brinker International from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Brinker International currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $135.48.

Brinker International Price Performance

EAT opened at $181.97 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $139.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $102.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54. Brinker International has a 1 year low of $40.50 and a 1 year high of $187.08. The stock has a market cap of $8.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.54, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 2.52.

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

Institutional Trading of Brinker International

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EAT. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its position in Brinker International by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 200 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Brinker International by 123.9% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 309 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Brinker International during the fourth quarter valued at $83,000. Truist Financial Corp bought a new stake in Brinker International in the fourth quarter worth approximately $206,000. Finally, Longboard Asset Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Brinker International in the 4th quarter valued at $219,000.

About Brinker International

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.