Public Sector Pension Investment Board Boosts Stock Holdings in Bloomin' Brands, Inc. $BLMN

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Bloomin' Brands, Inc. by 27.3% during the first quarter, holding 239,479 shares worth approximately $1.72 million.
• Several analysts have adjusted their price targets for Bloomin' Brands, with Goldman Sachs lowering it to $6.50 and JPMorgan raising it to $10.00, showing varying outlooks on the stock.
• Bloomin' Brands announced a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 8.4%, despite a negative dividend payout ratio of -1,200.00%.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in Bloomin' Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN - Free Report) by 27.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 239,479 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after buying an additional 51,312 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned approximately 0.28% of Bloomin' Brands worth $1,717,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BLMN. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Bloomin' Brands during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $7,890,000. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in Bloomin' Brands during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $374,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Bloomin' Brands by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 960,865 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $6,889,000 after purchasing an additional 26,643 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Bloomin' Brands during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $195,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC increased its position in Bloomin' Brands by 294.4% during the 1st quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 8,709 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 6,501 shares during the period.

Bloomin' Brands Stock Up 5.7%

NASDAQ BLMN traded up $0.40 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $7.36. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,891,201 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,386,659. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $8.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.65. Bloomin' Brands, Inc. has a twelve month low of $6.09 and a twelve month high of $18.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $626.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -147.20 and a beta of 1.32.

Bloomin' Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The restaurant operator reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.05. Bloomin' Brands had a negative net margin of 0.12% and a positive return on equity of 44.03%. The business had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $974.69 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.51 EPS. Bloomin' Brands's revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Bloomin' Brands, Inc. will post 1.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Bloomin' Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 19th. Bloomin' Brands's payout ratio is currently -1,200.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Bloomin' Brands from $8.00 to $6.50 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Bloomin' Brands from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Bloomin' Brands from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Bloomin' Brands from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Bloomin' Brands from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $9.88.

About Bloomin' Brands

Bloomin' Brands, Inc engages in the acquisition, operation, design, and development of restaurant concepts. It operates through the U.S. and International geographical segments. The U.S. segment operates in the USA and Puerto Rico. The International segment operates in Brazil, South Korea, Hong Kong, and China.