Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Sets New 1-Year High After Earnings Beat

Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $53.27 and last traded at $52.92, with a volume of 805537 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $49.66.

The restaurant operator reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.12 billion. Brinker International had a net margin of 3.63% and a negative return on equity of 113.41%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.23 EPS.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on EAT shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Brinker International from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. 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 report on Tuesday, January 16th. Raymond James increased their target price 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. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Brinker International currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.06.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brinker International

In other news, CFO Joseph G. Taylor sold 24,163 shares of the company’s 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 $2,548,045.17. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Brinker International

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EAT. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC acquired a new stake in Brinker International in the third quarter valued at about $57,246,000. Boston Partners purchased a new position in shares of Brinker International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $20,401,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Brinker International in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $12,853,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 24.6% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,503,198 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $64,908,000 after buying an additional 296,785 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Brinker International by 411.7% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,719 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $5,394,000 after buying an additional 137,354 shares in the last quarter.

Brinker International Stock Up 2.5 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $47.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.99. The stock has a market cap of $2.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 2.46.

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.