Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Stock Rating Upgraded by Argus

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) was upgraded by investment analysts at Argus from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm presently has a $150.00 price target on the restaurant operator’s stock. Argus’ price target indicates a potential upside of 9.34% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on EAT. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Bank Of America (Bofa) lifted their price target on Brinker International from $94.00 to $97.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. BMO Capital Markets cut Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $80.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup increased their target price on Brinker International from $83.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Brinker International from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Brinker International has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.53.

Brinker International Stock Up 3.1 %

Shares of Brinker International stock opened at $137.19 on Tuesday. Brinker International has a 1-year low of $37.25 and a 1-year high of $137.21. The company has a market capitalization of $6.10 billion, a PE ratio of 33.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 2.51. 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 50-day moving average of $118.61 and a 200-day moving average of $87.68.

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

Insider Activity at Brinker International

In other news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total value of $386,634.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,376,774.42. This represents a 13.99 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Brinker International by 33.2% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 986 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC grew its holdings in Brinker International by 1,265.2% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,884 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $136,000 after acquiring an additional 1,746 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in Brinker International in the second quarter worth about $166,000. Xponance Inc. bought a new stake in Brinker International in the second quarter worth about $202,000. Finally, Burford Brothers Inc. acquired a new stake in Brinker International in the 3rd quarter valued at about $203,000.

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.