Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Invests $492,000 in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 3,300 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $492,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in EAT. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Brinker International by 575.0% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 189 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new position in Brinker International in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new position in Brinker International in the first quarter worth $30,000. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Brinker International by 1,714.3% in the first quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in Brinker International in the fourth quarter worth $48,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EAT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Brinker International from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Brinker International from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Barclays cut their target price on Brinker International from $165.00 to $155.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Brinker International from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on Brinker International from $185.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $148.41.

Brinker International Stock Performance

Shares of Brinker International stock traded down $1.35 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $169.93. 1,301,612 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,478,096. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Brinker International, Inc. has a 1 year low of $56.27 and a 1 year high of $192.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.44, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.70. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $164.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $155.03.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.38 billion. Brinker International had a return on equity of 333.03% and a net margin of 6.50%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 27.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.24 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Brinker International news, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 2,350 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.91, for a total value of $319,388.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 20,591 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,798,522.81. This trade represents a 10.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ramona Hood sold 777 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.23, for a total value of $105,073.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 8,568 shares in the company, valued at $1,158,650.64. The trade was a 8.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 13,127 shares of company stock valued at $2,128,062. Insiders own 1.72% of the company's stock.

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.