Bank of America Raises Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Price Target to $190.00

Key Points

• Bank of America has raised its price target for Brinker International from $186 to $190, indicating a potential upside of 19.52% from the current stock price.
• Several other firms have also increased their price targets for Brinker, with a consensus target price of $171.41 and an average rating of "Hold."
• Brinker reported a quarterly earnings per share of $2.49, beating the consensus estimate and reflecting a 21.0% increase in revenue compared to the prior year.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by equities research analysts at Bank of America from $186.00 to $190.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "neutral" rating on the restaurant operator's stock. Bank of America's price target suggests a potential upside of 19.52% from the company's current price.

EAT has been the topic of a number of other reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Brinker International from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Brinker International from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Brinker International from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $171.41.

Brinker International Price Performance

Shares of EAT stock traded up $1.59 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $158.97. The company's stock had a trading volume of 835,504 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,494,936. The business has a fifty day moving average of $168.48 and a 200-day moving average of $158.35. The stock has a market cap of $7.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 1.68. Brinker International has a twelve month low of $65.26 and a twelve month high of $192.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 13th. The restaurant operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.47 by $0.02. Brinker International had a net margin of 6.50% and a return on equity of 333.03%. The business had revenue of $1.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.61 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Brinker International will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Joseph Michael Depinto sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.36, for a total transaction of $1,703,600.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 99,297 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,916,236.92. This trade represents a 9.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brinker International

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in Brinker International by 105.8% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC increased its position in Brinker International by 52.1% during the second quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 219 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Brinker International by 5.9% during the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,462 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $264,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its position in Brinker International by 0.7% during the second quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 13,043 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,352,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its position in Brinker International by 0.7% during the second quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 12,097 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,181,000 after acquiring an additional 85 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.

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