Quantbot Technologies LP Acquires 52,257 Shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its holdings in shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) by 341.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 67,575 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 52,257 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP owned approximately 0.15% of Brinker International worth $8,939,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC raised its holdings in Brinker International by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 200 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC raised its stake in Brinker International by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 3,274 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $433,000 after buying an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. 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 worth $41,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in Brinker International by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 12,989 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,718,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the period. Finally, Optimist Retirement Group LLC boosted its position in Brinker International by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 3,256 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on EAT shares. Wedbush raised their target price on Brinker International from $140.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Brinker International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Brinker International from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Argus raised shares of Brinker International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $162.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $140.18.

Brinker International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EAT opened at $144.93 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96, a current ratio of 0.33 and a quick ratio of 0.27. Brinker International, Inc. has a 1 year low of $43.37 and a 1 year high of $192.22. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $155.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $123.79. The stock has a market cap of $6.44 billion, a PE ratio of 25.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 2.56.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.10, for a total value of $1,253,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 26,752 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,470,259.20. This represents a 21.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Cindy L. Davis sold 5,802 shares of Brinker International stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.86, for a total value of $1,089,963.72. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,086,561.02. This trade represents a 34.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 20,802 shares of company stock valued at $3,752,464. 1.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.