Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 170,364 Shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT - Free Report) by 6.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,284,808 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 170,364 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 5.14% of Brinker International worth $174,856,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its stake in Brinker International by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 12,015 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $920,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Brinker International by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,357 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $967,000 after buying an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC raised its position in shares of Brinker International by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 3,256 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $249,000 after buying an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of Brinker International by 96.2% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 416 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in shares of Brinker International by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 12,382 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $896,000 after buying an additional 234 shares in the last quarter.

Brinker International Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of EAT traded up $0.40 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $127.85. 573,989 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,420,879. Brinker International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.25 and a fifty-two week high of $133.82. 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 business has a 50-day moving average of $110.96 and a 200-day moving average of $84.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 2.51.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.10 billion. Brinker International had a net margin of 4.11% and a negative return on equity of 839.19%. Brinker International's revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.28 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Brinker International, Inc. will post 5.43 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on EAT shares. Bank Of America (Bofa) lifted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $94.00 to $97.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Argus lowered shares of Brinker International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $69.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $91.38.

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.