Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,410,000 shares, a growth of 7.1% from the December 15th total of 5,050,000 shares. Currently, 12.4% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,200,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.5 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on EAT shares. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Brinker International from $120.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Brinker International from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $67.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley raised Brinker International from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $70.00 to $115.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Bank Of America (Bofa) boosted their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $94.00 to $97.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Brinker International currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $108.29.

Brinker International Price Performance

NYSE EAT traded up $0.63 during trading on Monday, hitting $144.17. 717,567 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 848,342. The company has a market cap of $6.41 billion, a PE ratio of 35.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 2.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $131.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $95.96. Brinker International has a fifty-two week low of $38.13 and a fifty-two week high of $147.65.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Brinker International will post 5.91 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total transaction of $386,634.06. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 23,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,376,774.42. This represents a 13.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brinker International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC increased its stake in shares of Brinker International by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 200 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Brinker International by 123.9% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 309 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $202,000. Burford Brothers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $203,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new stake in Brinker International during the 2nd quarter valued at $204,000.

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.