Wells Fargo & Company MN Boosts Stock Position in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT - Free Report) by 17.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 62,196 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 9,062 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned about 0.14% of Brinker International worth $8,228,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Brinker International in the third quarter worth $429,000. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 123.4% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 11,199 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $857,000 after acquiring an additional 6,185 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Brinker International by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 998,278 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $76,413,000 after purchasing an additional 8,105 shares during the period. Optimist Retirement Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Brinker International by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 3,256 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $249,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Brinker International by 23.5% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 272,822 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $20,879,000 after purchasing an additional 51,927 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 7,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.90, for a total value of $1,409,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 11,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,086,561.02. The trade was a 34.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 in the last three months. 1.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Brinker International Stock Performance

Shares of Brinker International stock traded up $5.87 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $162.76. The company had a trading volume of 429,789 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,451,871. The stock has a market cap of $7.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.21, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 2.21. Brinker International, Inc. has a 12-month low of $46.95 and a 12-month high of $192.21. 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 company has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $135.92.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on EAT shares. 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. Wedbush upped their price target on shares of Brinker International from $140.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Brinker International from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating and set a $115.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Brinker International from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $142.53.

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.