Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Reaches New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $136.45 and last traded at $136.25, with a volume of 92522 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $133.09.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EAT has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Brinker International from $70.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Brinker International from $83.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America raised their target price on Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Brinker International from $69.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Argus upgraded Brinker International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.53.

Brinker International Trading Up 3.1 %

The company has a market cap of $6.10 billion, a PE ratio of 33.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 2.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $118.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $87.68.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. Brinker International had a net margin of 4.11% and a negative return on equity of 839.19%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.28 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Brinker International, Inc. will post 5.43 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Brinker International

In other news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total transaction of $386,634.06. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,071 shares in the company, valued at $2,376,774.42. This represents a 13.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Brinker International

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in Brinker International by 13,850.1% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,057,416 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $76,546,000 after purchasing an additional 1,049,836 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in Brinker International by 31.7% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 942,510 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $68,228,000 after buying an additional 227,047 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in 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 buying an additional 219,836 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in Brinker International in the 3rd quarter worth about $14,611,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 1,160.2% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 192,268 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $13,918,000 after acquiring an additional 177,011 shares in the last quarter.

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.