Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Stock Price Expected to Rise, UBS Group Analyst Says

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) had its price target lifted by UBS Group from $108.00 to $146.00 in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on EAT. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Brinker International in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $150.00 target price on the stock. Argus raised Brinker International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Bank Of America (Bofa) increased their target price on Brinker International from $94.00 to $97.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Brinker International presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $103.53.

Brinker International Stock Down 2.8 %

Shares of EAT stock opened at $136.84 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $126.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $92.08. Brinker International has a twelve month low of $37.25 and a twelve month high of $142.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.32. The company has a market capitalization of $6.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.38, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 2.52.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Brinker International news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total value 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EAT. CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the 2nd quarter worth about $220,000. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in Brinker International by 1.9% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 12,382 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $896,000 after buying an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC grew its stake 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 buying an additional 1,746 shares during the last quarter. Choreo LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the second quarter worth approximately $211,000. Finally, Marco Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Brinker International in the second quarter valued at approximately $279,000.

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.