Russell Investments Group Ltd. Cuts Holdings in Brinker International, Inc. $EAT

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its stake in Brinker International by 15.5% in the first quarter, holding now 60,699 shares valued at approximately $9 million.
• Brinker International reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $2.49, which slightly exceeded analysts' expectations of $2.47, and its quarterly revenue increased by 21% compared to the previous year.
• Various institutional investors have recently altered their positions in Brinker International, with firms like AdvisorShares Investments and National Bank of Canada significantly increasing their stakes during the last quarter.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. cut its stake in shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT - Free Report) by 15.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 60,699 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 11,113 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.14% of Brinker International worth $9,047,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. AdvisorShares Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Brinker International by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. AdvisorShares Investments LLC now owns 2,131 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $282,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in Brinker International by 4.2% during the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 2,933 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $437,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in Brinker International by 575.0% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 189 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in Brinker International by 227.3% during the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 252 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brinker International in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000.

Brinker International Stock Down 1.5%

Brinker International stock opened at $155.72 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.74, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $167.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $157.92. Brinker International, Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.38 and a twelve month high of $192.21.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 13th. The restaurant operator reported $2.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. Brinker International had a return on equity of 211.86% and a net margin of 7.12%. Brinker International's quarterly revenue was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.61 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brinker International

In related news, Director Joseph Michael Depinto sold 10,000 shares of Brinker International stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 99,297 shares in the company, valued at $16,916,236.92. The trade was a 9.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Harriet Edelman sold 8,325 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.00, for a total value of $1,307,025.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 28,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,538,085. The trade was a 22.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on EAT shares. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Brinker International from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Brinker International from $155.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Brinker International from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Brinker International from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Brinker International from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $171.41.

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.

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