Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Rating Lowered to Hold at Argus

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) was downgraded by Argus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on EAT. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Brinker International in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Brinker International from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Barclays boosted their price target on Brinker International from $53.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Brinker International from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded Brinker International from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $72.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $63.53.

Brinker International Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE EAT opened at $79.78 on Tuesday. Brinker International has a twelve month low of $28.23 and a twelve month high of $79.99. The firm has a market cap of $3.55 billion, a PE ratio of 23.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 2.52. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 19.96.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 14th. The restaurant operator reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.04). Brinker International had a net margin of 3.52% and a negative return on equity of 274.62%. The firm had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.39 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Brinker International will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EAT. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the fourth quarter valued at $12,853,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 64,800.0% in the fourth quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 649 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 648 shares during the period. Seven Eight Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Brinker International in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,594,000. Tabor Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Brinker International in the fourth quarter worth about $3,849,000. Finally, Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in Brinker International by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 100,045 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $4,320,000 after buying an additional 13,733 shares during the last quarter.

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.