Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Acquires 566,894 Shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) by 2,612.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 588,594 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 566,894 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 1.32% of Brinker International worth $77,865,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EAT. Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in shares of Brinker International by 13,850.1% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,057,416 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $76,546,000 after buying an additional 1,049,836 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in Brinker International by 31.7% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 942,510 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $68,228,000 after acquiring an additional 227,047 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Brinker International by 55.1% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 618,728 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $47,351,000 after purchasing an additional 219,836 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new stake in Brinker International in the third quarter valued at $14,611,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 1,160.2% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 192,268 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $13,918,000 after purchasing an additional 177,011 shares during the period.

Insider Activity at Brinker International

In other Brinker International news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total value of $386,634.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,071 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,376,774.42. This trade represents a 13.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EAT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised Brinker International from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $70.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Brinker International from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $130.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America upped their target price on Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Argus raised shares of Brinker International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Brinker International from $108.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $105.28.

Brinker International Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE EAT opened at $143.48 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $129.55 and its 200-day moving average is $94.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.00, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 2.52. Brinker International, Inc. has a one year low of $37.25 and a one year high of $147.65.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.26. Brinker International had a net margin of 4.11% and a negative return on equity of 839.19%. The business had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Brinker International, Inc. will post 5.43 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.