Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Price Target Raised to $145.00

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) had its price objective raised by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $130.00 to $145.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective indicates a potential downside of 4.66% from the company’s current price.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on EAT. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $62.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Raymond James downgraded shares of Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Brinker International in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Brinker International from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Brinker International presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.08.

Brinker International Stock Performance

NYSE:EAT opened at $152.09 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.13, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 2.52. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $133.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $97.44. Brinker International has a twelve month low of $38.96 and a twelve month high of $155.13.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.28 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Brinker International will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Brinker International news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total value of $386,634.06. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 23,071 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,376,774.42. This represents a 13.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Brinker International by 0.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 998,278 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $76,413,000 after acquiring an additional 8,105 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 31.7% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 942,510 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $68,228,000 after buying an additional 227,047 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 691,230 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $52,900,000 after buying an additional 28,373 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the 4th quarter worth $81,888,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 55.1% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 618,728 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $47,351,000 after buying an additional 219,836 shares during the period.

Brinker International Company 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.