Investors Buy High Volume of Put Options on Bloomin’ Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN)

Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Traders purchased 70,192 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 5,275% compared to the typical volume of 1,306 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on BLMN. StockNews.com upgraded Bloomin’ Brands from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Bloomin’ Brands in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a “sell” rating and a $13.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $19.00 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $20.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on Bloomin’ Brands from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $18.00.

Bloomin’ Brands Stock Performance

NASDAQ BLMN opened at $12.18 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -110.72 and a beta of 1.95. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.46. Bloomin’ Brands has a 12-month low of $11.24 and a 12-month high of $30.13.

Bloomin’ Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The restaurant operator reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.04 billion. Bloomin’ Brands had a positive return on equity of 62.18% and a negative net margin of 0.12%. Bloomin’ Brands’s quarterly revenue was down 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.44 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Bloomin’ Brands will post 1.8 EPS for the current year.

Bloomin’ Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 25th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.88%. Bloomin’ Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently -872.73%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bloomin’ Brands

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Bloomin’ Brands by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 12,676 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $210,000 after buying an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in Bloomin’ Brands by 8.7% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 13,567 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $258,000 after acquiring an additional 1,083 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in Bloomin’ Brands by 8.5% in the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 17,204 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $331,000 after acquiring an additional 1,354 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Bloomin’ Brands by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 50,007 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $773,000 after purchasing an additional 1,392 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Bloomin’ Brands by 79.1% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,371 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,489 shares in the last quarter.

About Bloomin’ Brands

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.