Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,410,000 shares, an increase of 7.1% from the December 31st total of 5,050,000 shares. Currently, 12.4% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,200,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.5 days.

Brinker International Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of Brinker International stock traded down $0.97 on Tuesday, reaching $188.17. The company had a trading volume of 236,188 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,283,633. 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 firm’s 50-day moving average price is $140.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $103.44. The firm has a market cap of $8.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 2.54. Brinker International has a 1 year low of $42.99 and a 1 year high of $192.22.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) 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, research analysts predict that Brinker International will post 8.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on EAT shares. UBS Group increased their price target on Brinker International from $108.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Raymond James cut Brinker International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. KeyCorp downgraded Brinker International from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating and set a $115.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday, January 24th. Northcoast Research upgraded Brinker International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Brinker International from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $140.18.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brinker International

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its stake in Brinker International by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 200 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 123.9% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 309 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Brinker International in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $83,000. Burford Brothers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Brinker International during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $203,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of Brinker International during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $204,000.

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.