Raymond James Downgrades Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) to Outperform

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) was downgraded by equities researchers at Raymond James from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report released on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $82.50 price target on the restaurant operator’s stock, up from their previous price target of $62.00. Raymond James’ price objective indicates a potential upside of 24.58% from the company’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. UBS Group raised their target price on Brinker International from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Brinker International from $62.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Brinker International from $48.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Brinker International from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $54.03.

Brinker International Price Performance

EAT stock opened at $66.22 on Monday. Brinker International has a 1 year low of $28.23 and a 1 year high of $76.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.95 billion, a PE ratio of 19.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 2.51. The company’s 50-day moving average is $66.67 and its 200-day moving average is $52.64.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The restaurant operator reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.12 billion. Brinker International had a negative return on equity of 154.29% and a net margin of 3.55%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.23 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Brinker International will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 2,953 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.97, for a total transaction of $215,480.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 38,164 shares in the company, valued at $2,784,827.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Brinker International news, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 2,953 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.97, for a total value of $215,480.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 38,164 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,784,827.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Daniel S. Fuller sold 3,611 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.04, for a total transaction of $249,303.44. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 34,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,400,106.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 57,714 shares of company stock worth $3,637,623 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Brinker International

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EAT. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its stake in shares of Brinker International by 45.7% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 67,896 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,145,000 after buying an additional 21,302 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in Brinker International by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 23,079 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $997,000 after purchasing an additional 1,205 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in shares of Brinker International by 52.9% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 39,274 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,696,000 after purchasing an additional 13,582 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Brinker International by 148.5% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 23,255 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,004,000 after buying an additional 13,895 shares during the period. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its holdings in Brinker International by 248.7% during the 4th quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 3,379 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $148,000 after buying an additional 2,410 shares during the last quarter.

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.