Douglas N. Comings Sells 7,500 Shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) Stock

Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.90, for a total transaction of $1,409,250.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 34,252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,435,950.80. The trade was a 17.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Brinker International Trading Down 2.1 %

NYSE:EAT opened at $164.32 on Wednesday. Brinker International, Inc. has a 12-month low of $42.99 and a 12-month high of $192.21. The firm has a market cap of $7.30 billion, a PE ratio of 28.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 2.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $146.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $108.17.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prudential Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 152,434 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $20,165,000 after purchasing an additional 21,110 shares in the last quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Brinker International by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. now owns 26,657 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,526,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Stevens Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Brinker International in the fourth quarter valued at $745,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in Brinker International during the 4th quarter worth about $1,177,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Brinker International by 4,710.3% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 280,824 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $37,150,000 after acquiring an additional 274,986 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on EAT shares. Raymond James cut shares of Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Brinker International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Northcoast Research upgraded Brinker International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Brinker International from $69.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Brinker International currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $140.18.

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.