Trexquant Investment LP Sells 117,558 Shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Trexquant Investment LP lowered its holdings in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) by 54.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 100,292 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 117,558 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP’s holdings in Brinker International were worth $13,268,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Brinker International in the 4th quarter valued at about $410,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Brinker International by 23.5% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 272,822 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $20,879,000 after purchasing an additional 51,927 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Inc. AR bought a new position in Brinker International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $661,000. Ifrah Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Brinker International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $280,000. Finally, LMG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $400,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on EAT shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Brinker International from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $162.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. KeyCorp cut shares of Brinker International from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating and set a $115.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays lifted their price target on Brinker International from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Brinker International from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $140.18.

Brinker International Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of Brinker International stock opened at $150.91 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $156.72 and a 200-day moving average of $128.60. Brinker International, Inc. has a 52-week low of $43.37 and a 52-week high of $192.22. The stock has a market cap of $6.70 billion, a PE ratio of 26.15, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 2.56.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $1.43. Brinker International had a net margin of 5.45% and a return on equity of 879.47%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Brinker International

In other Brinker International news, Director Cindy L. Davis sold 5,802 shares of Brinker International stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.86, for a total value of $1,089,963.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,086,561.02. The trade was a 34.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.10, for a total value of $1,253,250.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 26,752 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,470,259.20. This trade represents a 21.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,802 shares of company stock worth $3,752,464. Company insiders own 1.72% of the company’s stock.

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.