Prudential Financial Inc. Grows Stake in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Prudential Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT - Free Report) by 16.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 152,434 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after acquiring an additional 21,110 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned about 0.34% of Brinker International worth $20,165,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its holdings in Brinker International by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 200 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 123.9% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 309 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Brinker International during the fourth quarter worth $83,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Brinker International during the fourth quarter valued at $126,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new stake in Brinker International in the 4th quarter valued at $146,000.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Cindy L. Davis sold 5,802 shares of Brinker International stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.86, for a total value of $1,089,963.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,107 shares in the company, valued at $2,086,561.02. The trade was a 34.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of the 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 owns 26,752 shares in the company, valued at $4,470,259.20. This represents a 21.90 % 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 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.72% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wedbush raised their price objective on Brinker International from $140.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "neutral" 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 price objective for the company in a report 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. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Argus upgraded Brinker International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Brinker International presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $140.18.

Brinker International Stock Performance

Shares of EAT traded up $1.77 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $149.36. 1,636,337 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,443,018. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $156.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $128.03. Brinker International, Inc. has a 12-month low of $43.37 and a 12-month high of $192.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 2.56.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share 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 analysts anticipate that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal 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.