Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) Upgraded at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating in a research report report published on Friday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $115.00 target price on the restaurant operator’s stock, up from their previous target price of $70.00.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on EAT. Argus cut Brinker International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $105.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $69.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Brinker International from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $67.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $94.63.

Brinker International Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of Brinker International stock opened at $134.26 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54. Brinker International has a 12-month low of $37.25 and a 12-month high of $136.15. The stock has a market cap of $5.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.75, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 2.51. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $86.33.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.26. Brinker International had a negative return on equity of 839.19% and a net margin of 4.11%. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.28 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Brinker International will post 5.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total value of $386,634.06. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,376,774.42. This trade represents a 13.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brinker International

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its position in Brinker International by 1.1% during the third quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 12,015 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $920,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Brinker International by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,357 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $967,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Optimist Retirement Group LLC boosted its position in Brinker International by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 3,256 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $249,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Brinker International by 96.2% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 416 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in Brinker International by 1.9% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 12,382 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $896,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period.

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.