American Century Companies Inc. Increases Stock Position in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) by 4,710.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 280,824 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after buying an additional 274,986 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Brinker International were worth $37,150,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC boosted its stake in Brinker International by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 200 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 123.9% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 309 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Brinker International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $83,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Brinker International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $126,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in Brinker International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $146,000.

Brinker International Stock Up 0.2 %

EAT stock opened at $154.46 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 2.56. 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 business’s 50-day moving average is $156.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $126.13. Brinker International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $43.37 and a fifty-two week high of $192.22.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, analysts forecast that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Northcoast Research raised Brinker International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of Brinker International from $140.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Brinker International from $162.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of Brinker International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Brinker International from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $140.18.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Cindy L. Davis sold 5,802 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.86, for a total transaction of $1,089,963.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,086,561.02. The trade was a 34.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.10, for a total transaction of $1,253,250.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 26,752 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,470,259.20. The trade was a 21.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 20,802 shares of company stock valued at $3,752,464. 1.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Brinker International 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.