Hennessy Advisors Inc. Purchases Shares of 619,000 Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 619,000 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $81,888,000. Brinker International comprises about 2.4% of Hennessy Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Hennessy Advisors Inc. owned about 1.39% of Brinker International at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Choreo LLC purchased a new stake in Brinker International in the second quarter valued at $211,000. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D acquired a new position in Brinker International during the second quarter worth approximately $1,964,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in Brinker International by 15.9% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 295,700 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $21,406,000 after buying an additional 40,500 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Brinker International in the second quarter valued at approximately $297,000. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its position in shares of Brinker International by 28.2% during the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 6,758 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $489,000 after acquiring an additional 1,485 shares during the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Brinker International from $97.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Brinker International from $95.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Brinker International in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a “buy” rating and a $150.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $80.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Brinker International from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $95.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $108.29.

Brinker International Stock Up 0.0 %

Brinker International stock opened at $143.70 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 2.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 63.54, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.32. Brinker International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.53 and a fifty-two week high of $147.65. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $130.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $95.11.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.10 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.28 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Brinker International, Inc. will post 5.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Brinker International

In other Brinker International news, CFO Michaela M. Ware sold 3,753 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.02, for a total transaction of $386,634.06. Following 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.72% of the company’s stock.

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.