40,915 Shares in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) Bought by EAM Investors LLC

EAM Investors LLC purchased a new stake in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 40,915 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $5,413,000. Brinker International makes up 0.8% of EAM Investors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. EAM Investors LLC owned 0.09% of Brinker International at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Brinker International in 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 purchasing an additional 566,894 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its position in shares of Brinker International by 1,145.2% in the 4th 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. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of Brinker International by 4,710.3% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 280,824 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $37,150,000 after purchasing an additional 274,986 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Brinker International during the 4th quarter valued at $21,549,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on EAT. Barclays lifted their price objective on Brinker International from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Brinker International from $108.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Brinker International from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Brinker International from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, KeyCorp cut Brinker International from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Brinker International has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $144.47.

Brinker International Trading Down 3.9 %

Shares of EAT traded down $5.98 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $147.47. 286,348 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,448,679. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market cap of $6.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.56, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 2.21. Brinker International, Inc. has a 52-week low of $45.52 and a 52-week high of $192.22. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $135.31.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by $1.43. Brinker International had a return on equity of 879.47% and a net margin of 5.45%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brinker International

In related news, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.10, for a total value of $1,253,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 26,752 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,470,259.20. This trade represents a 21.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Cindy L. Davis sold 5,802 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.86, for a total transaction of $1,089,963.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,107 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,086,561.02. This trade represents a 34.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 20,802 shares of company stock valued at $3,752,464. Insiders own 1.72% of the company's stock.

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.