Barclays Raises Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Price Target to $143.00

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) had its price target lifted by investment analysts at Barclays from $95.00 to $143.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Barclays‘s price target would indicate a potential upside of 2.37% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Brinker International from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Brinker International in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price target for the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on Brinker International from $83.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. BMO Capital Markets lowered Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on Brinker International from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given 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 target price of $103.53.

Brinker International Stock Performance

Shares of EAT stock opened at $139.69 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $126.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $92.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 2.52. Brinker International has a 12 month low of $37.25 and a 12 month high of $142.47.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.26. Brinker International had a negative return on equity of 839.19% and a net margin of 4.11%. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.28 earnings per share. Brinker International’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Brinker International will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,071 shares in the company, valued at $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 SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brinker International

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Brinker International by 123.9% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 309 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Brinker International by 23.5% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 272,822 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $20,879,000 after acquiring an additional 51,927 shares during the period. Optimist Retirement Group LLC raised its position in Brinker International by 6.1% in the third quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 3,256 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new stake in Brinker International in the 3rd quarter valued at about $286,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Brinker International by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 998,278 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $76,413,000 after purchasing an additional 8,105 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.