DGS Capital Management LLC Invests $242,000 in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

DGS Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,831 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $242,000.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of EAT. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the 4th quarter worth about $81,888,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of Brinker International by 2,612.4% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 588,594 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $77,865,000 after acquiring an additional 566,894 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its holdings in Brinker International by 1,145.2% during the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 416,044 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $55,038,000 after purchasing an additional 382,633 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in Brinker International by 31.7% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 942,510 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $68,228,000 after purchasing an additional 227,047 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Brinker International by 55.1% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 618,728 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $47,351,000 after purchasing an additional 219,836 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Brinker International

In other news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total transaction of $386,634.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,376,774.42. This trade represents a 13.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.72% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on EAT. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Brinker International in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI raised 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 boosted their target price for the stock from $67.00 to $100.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Brinker International from $62.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Brinker International from $120.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Brinker International currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.45.

Brinker International Price Performance

Shares of EAT opened at $149.63 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $134.65 and its 200-day moving average is $98.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The company has a market capitalization of $6.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 2.52. Brinker International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.11 and a fifty-two week high of $155.13.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last released its 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 net margin of 4.11% and a negative return on equity of 839.19%. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.28 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Brinker International, Inc. will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Brinker International

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.