Quantbot Technologies LP Acquires 52,257 Shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its holdings in shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) by 341.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 67,575 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 52,257 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Brinker International were worth $8,939,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of EAT. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC increased its holdings 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 valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC boosted its position in Brinker International by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 3,274 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $433,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Brinker International by 123.9% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Brinker International by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 12,989 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,718,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optimist Retirement Group LLC lifted its position in Brinker International by 6.1% during the third quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 3,256 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. KeyCorp cut Brinker International from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating and set a $115.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday, January 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Brinker International from $162.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of Brinker International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Brinker International from $108.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $140.18.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Cindy L. Davis sold 5,802 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.86, for a total transaction of $1,089,963.72. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,107 shares in the company, valued at $2,086,561.02. This trade represents a 34.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of Brinker International stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.90, for a total value of $1,409,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 34,252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,435,950.80. This represents a 17.96 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 20,802 shares of company stock valued at $3,752,464 in the last three months. 1.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Brinker International Price Performance

NYSE:EAT opened at $144.93 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $155.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $123.79. The firm has a market cap of $6.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.12, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 2.56. Brinker International, Inc. has a one year low of $43.37 and a one year high of $192.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.33.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $1.43. Brinker International had a return on equity of 879.47% and a net margin of 5.45%. Research analysts expect that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

Brinker International 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.