Bloomin’ Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN) Trading 4.7% Higher – Here’s Why

Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN)’s share price was up 4.7% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $8.14 and last traded at $8.30. Approximately 136,120 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 1,767,295 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.93.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $16.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America lowered shares of Bloomin’ Brands from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $18.00 to $13.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Bloomin’ Brands from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Barclays set a $11.00 price objective on Bloomin’ Brands and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $14.50.

Bloomin’ Brands Stock Down 8.0 %

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $10.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $12.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.46. The company has a market capitalization of $629.34 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -67.36 and a beta of 2.04.

Bloomin’ Brands Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.10%. Bloomin’ Brands’s payout ratio is -40.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bloomin’ Brands

In other Bloomin’ Brands news, EVP Patrick M. Hafner sold 9,555 shares of Bloomin’ Brands stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.32, for a total transaction of $79,497.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Bloomin’ Brands

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Bloomin’ Brands by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 50,007 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $773,000 after purchasing an additional 1,392 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Bloomin’ Brands during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Bloomin’ Brands in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in shares of Bloomin’ Brands by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 238,093 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,907,000 after purchasing an additional 2,977 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Bloomin’ Brands during the 4th quarter worth $41,000.

About Bloomin’ Brands

Bloomin’ Brands, Inc engages in the acquisition, operation, design, and development of restaurant concepts. It operates through the U.S. and International geographical segments. The U.S. segment operates in the USA and Puerto Rico. The International segment operates in Brazil, South Korea, Hong Kong, and China.