Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Price Target Raised to $146.00

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) had its target price raised by equities researchers at UBS Group from $108.00 to $146.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. UBS Group’s price target points to a potential upside of 4.52% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on EAT. Citigroup upped their price target on Brinker International from $83.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Brinker International from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $67.00 to $100.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Brinker International from $76.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Bank Of America (Bofa) boosted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $94.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded shares of Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Fifteen research 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 presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.53.

Brinker International Stock Performance

NYSE EAT opened at $139.69 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.21 billion, a PE ratio of 34.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 2.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.32. Brinker International has a 52-week low of $37.25 and a 52-week high of $142.47. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $126.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $92.42.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.28 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Brinker International will post 5.43 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of Brinker International stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 13.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EAT. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 123.9% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 309 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in Brinker International by 1,265.2% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,884 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $136,000 after buying an additional 1,746 shares during the last quarter. Burford Brothers Inc. purchased a new stake in Brinker International in the third quarter worth approximately $203,000. Parametrica Management Ltd bought a new position in Brinker International during the third quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Finally, Xponance Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Brinker International during the second quarter worth approximately $202,000.

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.