Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Raised to “Equal Weight” at Wells Fargo & Company

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage presently has a $130.00 target price on the restaurant operator’s stock, up from their prior target price of $95.00. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 1.67% from the company’s current price.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Barclays lifted their target price on Brinker International from $76.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $62.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Brinker International from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $67.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Bank Of America (Bofa) boosted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $94.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Brinker International has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $91.38.

Brinker International Price Performance

EAT opened at $127.86 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $110.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $84.07. Brinker International has a twelve month low of $37.25 and a twelve month high of $133.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54. The company has a market capitalization of $5.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.19, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 2.51.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.26. Brinker International had a net margin of 4.11% and a negative return on equity of 839.19%. The business had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.28 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Brinker International will post 5.43 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total transaction of $386,634.06. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,376,774.42. This trade represents a 13.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brinker International

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. CWM LLC lifted its position in Brinker International by 96.2% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 416 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Brinker International during the 2nd quarter valued at $352,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Brinker International by 1,686.8% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 192,972 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $13,969,000 after acquiring an additional 182,172 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Brinker International by 1.3% in the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,357 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $967,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. Finally, CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Brinker International during the second quarter valued at about $180,000.

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.