Harvest Investment Services LLC Invests $347,000 in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Harvest Investment Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,623 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $347,000.

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. raised its holdings in 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 worth $77,865,000 after purchasing an additional 566,894 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its position in Brinker International by 1,145.2% in 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 during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in 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 valued at $37,150,000 after purchasing an additional 274,986 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Brinker International during the 4th quarter valued at $21,549,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on EAT. Barclays cut their price objective on Brinker International from $190.00 to $165.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" 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 note on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush lifted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $140.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Argus upgraded Brinker International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Brinker International presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $142.53.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Brinker International news, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of Brinker International stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was 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. The trade was a 21.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Cindy L. Davis sold 5,802 shares of the 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 ninety days, insiders sold 20,802 shares of company stock worth $3,752,464. 1.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Brinker International Price Performance

NYSE EAT opened at $156.67 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $148.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $135.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 2.21. Brinker International, Inc. has a 52-week low of $46.74 and a 52-week high of $192.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96, a current ratio of 0.33 and a quick ratio of 0.27.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) 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 net margin of 5.45% and a return on equity of 879.47%. Equities research analysts predict that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share 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.

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