UBS Group Issues Positive Forecast for Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Stock Price

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) had its price target raised by stock analysts at UBS Group from $108.00 to $146.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. UBS Group’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 3.92% from the stock’s current price.

EAT has been the topic of several other research reports. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Brinker International from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Brinker International from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $70.00 to $115.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Brinker International from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the company from $67.00 to $100.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Brinker International from $69.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Brinker International has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $101.13.

Brinker International Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of EAT opened at $140.49 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.24 billion, a PE ratio of 34.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 2.52. Brinker International has a 1 year low of $37.25 and a 1 year 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $125.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $91.62.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.10 billion. Brinker International had a net margin of 4.11% and a negative return on equity of 839.19%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.28 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Brinker International will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Brinker International news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 23,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,376,774.42. This trade represents a 13.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brinker International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EAT. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Brinker International by 123.9% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 309 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Brinker International by 1,265.2% in the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,884 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $136,000 after acquiring an additional 1,746 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. acquired a new stake in Brinker International in the second quarter valued at $202,000. Burford Brothers Inc. acquired a new stake in Brinker International in the third quarter valued at $203,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of Brinker International during the 2nd quarter worth $204,000.

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.