Jefferies Financial Group Boosts Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Price Target to $48.00

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by investment analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $47.00 to $48.00 in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "hold" rating on the restaurant operator's stock. Jefferies Financial Group's target price points to a potential upside of 6.01% from the company's previous close.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Brinker International from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Brinker International from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Barclays lifted their target price on Brinker International from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Brinker International from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Brinker International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Brinker International has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $43.36.

Brinker International Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:EAT traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $45.28. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,069,808 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,284,659. The firm has a market cap of $2.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 2.46. Brinker International has a 1 year low of $28.23 and a 1 year high of $51.72. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $46.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.77.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The restaurant operator reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.05. Brinker International had a negative return on equity of 113.41% and a net margin of 3.63%. The firm had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.08 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Brinker International will post 3.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Joseph G. Taylor sold 24,163 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.97, for a total value of $1,086,610.11. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 56,661 shares in the company, valued at $2,548,045.17. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Brinker International by 20.4% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 332,176 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $10,493,000 after acquiring an additional 56,192 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in Brinker International by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 23,079 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $997,000 after buying an additional 1,205 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Brinker International by 63.9% in the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 31,428 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $993,000 after buying an additional 12,251 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Brinker International by 411.7% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,719 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $5,394,000 after buying an additional 137,354 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its holdings in Brinker International by 0.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,694,269 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $211,472,000 after buying an additional 54,628 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.