Aberdeen Group plc Decreases Stock Position in Brinker International, Inc. $EAT

Aberdeen Group plc lowered its stake in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) by 20.1% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 135,756 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 34,180 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc’s holdings in Brinker International were worth $24,481,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of EAT. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Brinker International by 575.0% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 189 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Brinker International by 153.4% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 783 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 12.8% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,267 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $934,000 after buying an additional 713 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 46.8% in the 1st quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 19,942 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,972,000 after buying an additional 6,359 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 8,187.9% in the 1st quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,735 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $408,000 after buying an additional 2,702 shares during the last quarter.

Brinker International Price Performance

Shares of EAT opened at $128.61 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $146.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $154.54. Brinker International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $83.61 and a fifty-two week high of $192.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.71 billion, a PE ratio of 15.48, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.31.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 13th. The restaurant operator reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.47 by $0.02. Brinker International had a net margin of 7.12% and a return on equity of 211.86%. The firm had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.61 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Brinker International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.900-10.50 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Brinker International, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Brinker International

In other news, Director Harriet Edelman sold 8,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.00, for a total value of $1,307,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 28,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,538,085. This represents a 22.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Douglas N. Comings sold 16,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.48, for a total transaction of $2,503,680.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 12,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,026,572.48. The trade was a 55.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 68,325 shares of company stock valued at $10,754,785. Company insiders own 1.43% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EAT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Brinker International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 16th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Brinker International from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $210.00 in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Brinker International from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Brinker International from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Brinker International from $207.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $169.83.

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.