Sciencast Management LP Takes $330,000 Position in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Sciencast Management LP bought a new position in shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 2,494 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $330,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Brinker International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $81,888,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position 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 worth $77,865,000 after purchasing an additional 566,894 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its holdings 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 valued at $55,038,000 after buying an additional 382,633 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Brinker International by 55.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 618,728 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $47,351,000 after buying an additional 219,836 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Brinker International during the 3rd quarter worth $14,611,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on EAT shares. KeyCorp cut Brinker International from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating and set a $115.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Brinker International from $108.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Brinker International from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $70.00 to $115.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Brinker International from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Brinker International from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Brinker International has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $140.18.

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Insider Activity at Brinker International

In other news, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Cindy L. Davis sold 5,802 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the director now owns 11,107 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,086,561.02. This represents a 34.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,802 shares of company stock valued at $3,752,464 over the last three months. 1.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Brinker International Stock Performance

EAT traded up $3.21 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $157.36. The stock had a trading volume of 738,999 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,401,151. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.96, a current ratio of 0.33 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $155.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $125.11. Brinker International, Inc. has a one year low of $43.37 and a one year high of $192.22. The firm has a market cap of $6.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 2.56.

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

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.