Piper Sandler Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Stock

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) had its price target boosted by Piper Sandler from $62.00 to $97.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

EAT has been the topic of several other research reports. Argus downgraded Brinker International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Brinker International from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Brinker International from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Raymond James lowered Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.45.

Brinker International Price Performance

NYSE:EAT traded up $1.59 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $109.53. The stock had a trading volume of 89,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,450,425. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.87 billion, a PE ratio of 26.33, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 2.46. Brinker International has a 52 week low of $33.24 and a 52 week high of $110.01. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $81.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $70.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.32.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.28 earnings per share. Brinker International’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Brinker International will post 5.44 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 stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total transaction of $386,634.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 23,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,376,774.42. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EAT. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC boosted its holdings in Brinker International by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 12,015 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $920,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Brinker International by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,357 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $967,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Brinker International by 96.2% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 416 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 12,382 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $896,000 after buying an additional 234 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in Brinker International by 33.2% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 986 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares in 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.