Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,910,000 shares, a growth of 13.7% from the May 31st total of 6,080,000 shares. Currently, 8.2% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,430,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.8 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on BLMN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Bloomin’ Brands from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Barclays decreased their target price on Bloomin’ Brands from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Bloomin’ Brands from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Bloomin’ Brands from $29.00 to $27.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Bloomin’ Brands has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.30.

Bloomin’ Brands Price Performance

Shares of BLMN traded down $0.26 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $18.97. 555,913 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,389,102. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.12, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.33. Bloomin’ Brands has a 12-month low of $18.36 and a 12-month high of $30.13. The company has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.05 and a beta of 2.04. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $22.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.42.

Bloomin’ Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The restaurant operator reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.75 by ($0.05). Bloomin’ Brands had a net margin of 1.56% and a return on equity of 65.73%. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.98 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Bloomin’ Brands will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Bloomin’ Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th were paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 17th. Bloomin’ Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 150.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bloomin’ Brands

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of BLMN. Boston Partners lifted its stake in Bloomin’ Brands by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 779,972 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $22,199,000 after acquiring an additional 11,009 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Bloomin’ Brands during the 1st quarter worth about $867,000. EMC Capital Management lifted its stake in Bloomin’ Brands by 155.0% during the 1st quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 15,829 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $454,000 after acquiring an additional 9,621 shares in the last quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Bloomin’ Brands during the 1st quarter worth about $428,000. Finally, Bayesian Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Bloomin’ Brands during the 1st quarter worth about $219,000.

Bloomin’ Brands Company Profile

Bloomin' Brands, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates casual, upscale casual, and fine dining restaurants in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, U.S. and International. Its restaurant portfolio has four concepts, including Outback Steakhouse, a casual steakhouse restaurant; Carrabba's Italian Grill, a casual Italian restaurant; Bonefish Grill; and Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, a contemporary steakhouse.