Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Rating Increased to Overweight at Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Brinker International from an "equal weight" to an "overweight" rating, with a new price target of $175.00, indicating a potential upside of 28.64% from its previous close.
• Analysts from various firms have also increased their price targets for Brinker International, with six analysts rating it as a Buy and eleven as Hold, resulting in a consensus target price of $173.18.
• Brinker International reported a quarterly earnings of $2.49 per share, beating expectations and showing a revenue increase of 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Free Report) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a report released on Monday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has $175.00 target price on the restaurant operator's stock, up from their prior target price of $165.00.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on EAT. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Brinker International from $155.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Brinker International from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Brinker International from $186.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Brinker International from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 16th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Brinker International from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $173.18.

Brinker International Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE EAT traded up $2.17 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $138.52. 1,655,299 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,239,598. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $155.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $156.26. Brinker International has a one year low of $74.73 and a one year high of $192.21. The company has a market cap of $6.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.43.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 13th. The restaurant operator reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 7.12% and a return on equity of 211.86%. Brinker International's revenue was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.61 earnings per share. Brinker International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.900-10.50 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Brinker International will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brinker International

In other Brinker International news, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 16,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.48, for a total value of $2,503,680.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 12,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,026,572.48. This represents a 55.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 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 transaction of $1,307,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 28,905 shares in the company, valued at $4,538,085. This trade represents a 22.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 68,325 shares of company stock valued at $10,754,785. Insiders own 1.72% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Brinker International

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Concord Wealth Partners acquired a new position in shares of Brinker International during the second quarter worth $25,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Brinker International by 105.8% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc acquired a new position in shares of Brinker International during the second quarter worth $33,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Brinker International during the second quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 161 shares in 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.