Brokerages Set Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN) Target Price at $14.60

Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN) has been given a consensus rating of “Reduce” by the eleven research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and nine have given a hold recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $14.50.

Several research analysts have issued reports on BLMN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Bloomin’ Brands from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Bloomin’ Brands from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays set a $11.00 price objective on Bloomin’ Brands and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com raised Bloomin’ Brands from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Bank of America downgraded Bloomin’ Brands from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $18.00 to $13.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th.

Bloomin’ Brands Stock Up 1.9 %

NASDAQ:BLMN opened at $8.09 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $10.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.36. Bloomin’ Brands has a 52-week low of $7.75 and a 52-week high of $29.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.46, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.31. The company has a market cap of $687.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -73.54 and a beta of 2.04.

Bloomin’ Brands Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.42%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. Bloomin’ Brands’s payout ratio is presently -40.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Patrick M. Hafner sold 9,555 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.32, for a total transaction of $79,497.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Bloomin’ Brands

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BLMN. Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in Bloomin’ Brands during the 3rd quarter worth $41,325,000. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Bloomin’ Brands by 8,666.6% during the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 1,568,253 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $19,148,000 after purchasing an additional 1,550,364 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Bloomin’ Brands by 565.9% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,791,366 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $21,873,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522,370 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in Bloomin’ Brands by 385.6% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,817,145 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $22,187,000 after purchasing an additional 1,442,964 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in Bloomin’ Brands by 483.0% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,225,608 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $14,965,000 after purchasing an additional 1,015,372 shares in the last quarter.

About Bloomin’ Brands

Bloomin’ Brands, Inc engages in the acquisition, operation, design, and development of restaurant concepts. It operates through the U.S. and International geographical segments. The U.S. segment operates in the USA and Puerto Rico. The International segment operates in Brazil, South Korea, Hong Kong, and China.