Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Price Target Raised to $50.00

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) had its price objective upped by Evercore ISI from $48.00 to $50.00 in a research report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “in-line” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Evercore ISI’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 10.55% from the stock’s previous close.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Brinker International from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Brinker International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $48.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Brinker International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.80.

Brinker International Stock Performance

EAT stock opened at $45.23 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.92. Brinker International has a 52 week low of $28.23 and a 52 week high of $51.72. The stock has a market cap of $2.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 2.46.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The restaurant operator reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.05. Brinker International had a net margin of 3.63% and a negative return on equity of 113.41%. The company had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.08 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that Brinker International will post 3.71 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Brinker International

In related news, CFO Joseph G. Taylor sold 24,163 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.97, for a total transaction of $1,086,610.11. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 56,661 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,548,045.17. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brinker International

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of EAT. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Brinker International by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 17,318 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $748,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in Brinker International by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,070 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Brinker International by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 8,661 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $374,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Brinker International by 10.7% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,659 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $116,000 after acquiring an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in shares of Brinker International by 68.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 946 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares during the period.

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.