Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Brinker International to “buy” from “hold,” adding to broadly positive analyst sentiment. MarketBeat reports a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $249.80.
• Brinker exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.77 EPS versus a $2.45 estimate and $1.48 billion in revenue, up 9.4% year over year.
• Despite strong operating results and institutional buying, insiders sold substantial holdings, including CEO Kevin Hochman’s 40,000-share sale; the stock opened at $212.27, down 3.5%.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on EAT. TD Cowen increased their target price on Brinker International from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Northcoast Research upgraded Brinker International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $275.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $175.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Brinker International from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Brinker International from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $249.80.

Brinker International Stock Down 3.5%

NYSE:EAT opened at $212.27 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.82 billion, a PE ratio of 18.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.25. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $209.45 and a 200-day moving average of $174.58. Brinker International has a 52 week low of $100.30 and a 52 week high of $254.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The restaurant operator reported $2.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.45 by $0.32. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.46 billion. Brinker International had a return on equity of 125.65% and a net margin of 8.44%. The business's revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.17 EPS. Analysts predict that Brinker International will post 13.61 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Brinker International news, EVP George S. Felix sold 14,349 shares of Brinker International stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.47, for a total transaction of $3,407,457.03. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,293 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,494,398.71. The trade was a 69.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kevin Hochman sold 40,000 shares of Brinker International stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.15, for a total value of $9,726,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 144,090 shares in the company, valued at $35,035,483.50. The trade was a 21.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 213,694 shares of company stock worth $50,383,890. 1.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EAT. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in shares of Brinker International by 18.0% in the 2nd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 63,795 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $10,718,000 after purchasing an additional 9,733 shares during the last quarter. Callan Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Brinker International during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,258,000. Wealth High Governance Capital Ltda acquired a new stake in Brinker International during the second quarter valued at approximately $3,710,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in Brinker International by 37.7% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 242,648 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $34,643,000 after purchasing an additional 66,383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cynosure Group LLC bought a new stake in Brinker International during the second quarter worth approximately $766,000.

Brinker International News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Brinker International this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Brinker issued fiscal 2027 EPS guidance of $13.30–$13.90, above the $13.26 analyst consensus. The company’s strong first-quarter results, including accelerating Chili’s traffic, also supported investor optimism. Brinker International advances on strong Q1 results and raised outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts broadly raised their views following the results. Wells Fargo lifted its target to $285, Baird to $280, Citigroup to $277, TD Cowen to $270, Morgan Stanley to $262 and KeyCorp to $258; the firms maintained bullish ratings such as “buy,” “overweight” or “outperform.” Wells Fargo analyst recommendations
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted Brinker as a strong growth stock, reinforcing the investment case based on its growth-oriented metrics. Why Brinker International is a strong growth stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Fiscal 2027 revenue guidance of $6.2 billion–$6.3 billion is broadly in line with expectations, although its midpoint is slightly below the $6.3 billion consensus estimate.
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Kevin Hochman sold 40,000 EAT shares for approximately $8.8 million, reducing his ownership by 27.66%. While the transaction does not necessarily indicate a change in business fundamentals, the sizable insider sale can weigh on sentiment. SEC insider ownership filing

About Brinker International

Brinker International, Inc is a casual-dining restaurant company that owns, operates and franchises restaurants in the United States and select international markets. The company is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and serves customers through company-operated and franchised locations.

Brinker's principal brands are Chili's Grill & Bar and Maggiano's Little Italy. Chili's offers a broad menu of burgers, steaks, ribs, fajitas, Tex-Mex dishes, salads and beverages in a full-service, casual setting.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.