Raymond James Financial Inc. Purchases Shares of 236,060 Bloomin' Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Bloomin' Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 236,060 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $2,882,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.28% of Bloomin' Brands as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. A&I Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bloomin' Brands in the fourth quarter worth $343,000. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Bloomin' Brands by 29.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 219,080 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $3,621,000 after purchasing an additional 49,723 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bloomin' Brands by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,414,415 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $17,270,000 after purchasing an additional 159,356 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Bloomin' Brands by 86.0% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 381,248 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $4,655,000 after purchasing an additional 176,240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Skylands Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bloomin' Brands during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,407,000.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BLMN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Bloomin' Brands from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Bloomin' Brands from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Bloomin' Brands from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Bloomin' Brands from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on Bloomin' Brands from $11.00 to $9.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $14.30.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Patrick M. Hafner sold 9,555 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.32, for a total value of $79,497.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Bloomin' Brands Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BLMN traded up $0.14 during trading on Friday, reaching $8.14. The stock had a trading volume of 1,084,884 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,962,109. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $8.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.46. Bloomin' Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $6.09 and a one year high of $25.89. The company has a market capitalization of $691.68 million, a P/E ratio of -73.95 and a beta of 1.76.

Bloomin' Brands Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. Bloomin' Brands's payout ratio is presently -40.27%.

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.