The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 787 Shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its holdings in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 23,021 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 787 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Brinker International were worth $3,045,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Brinker International during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its stake in shares of Brinker International by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 200 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 171 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Brinker International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Brinker International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $83,000.

Insider Activity at Brinker International

In related news, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.10, for a total transaction of $1,253,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 26,752 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,470,259.20. This trade represents a 21.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Ramona Hood sold 777 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.23, for a total transaction of $105,073.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 8,568 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,158,650.64. The trade was a 8.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on EAT. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $162.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Brinker International from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Northcoast Research raised Brinker International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Brinker International from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Brinker International from $165.00 to $155.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.14.

Brinker International Stock Performance

Shares of EAT opened at $137.09 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.66. Brinker International, Inc. has a 52 week low of $56.27 and a 52 week high of $192.22. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $144.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $140.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.33.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.38 billion. Brinker International had a return on equity of 879.47% and a net margin of 5.45%. Brinker International’s quarterly revenue was up 27.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.24 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brinker International 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.