Bloomin’ Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN) Lowered to “Sell” at StockNews.com

Bloomin’ Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on BLMN. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $26.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Barclays lowered their price target on Bloomin’ Brands from $30.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Bloomin’ Brands from $27.00 to $20.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Bloomin’ Brands from $26.00 to $22.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on Bloomin’ Brands from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $22.33.

Bloomin’ Brands Stock Performance

BLMN traded down $0.59 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $16.45. 1,426,550 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,460,565. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.42 billion, a PE ratio of 25.70 and a beta of 2.04. The company’s 50-day moving average is $16.77 and its 200 day moving average is $19.83. Bloomin’ Brands has a 52 week low of $15.14 and a 52 week high of $30.13.

Bloomin’ Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The restaurant operator reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.07). Bloomin’ Brands had a return on equity of 61.90% and a net margin of 0.70%. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.74 EPS. Bloomin’ Brands’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Bloomin’ Brands will post 2.08 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bloomin’ Brands

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in Bloomin’ Brands by 8.8% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 23,587 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $676,000 after buying an additional 1,915 shares during the last quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bloomin’ Brands in the first quarter worth $2,042,000. Easterly Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bloomin’ Brands by 1.9% in the first quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC now owns 565,398 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $16,216,000 after acquiring an additional 10,396 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bloomin’ Brands in the first quarter worth $229,000. Finally, Texas Permanent School Fund Corp raised its holdings in shares of Bloomin’ Brands by 1.4% in the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 75,979 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,179,000 after acquiring an additional 1,017 shares during the last quarter.

Bloomin’ Brands Company Profile

Bloomin' Brands, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates casual, upscale casual, and fine dining restaurants in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, U.S. and International. Its restaurant portfolio has four concepts, including Outback Steakhouse, a casual steakhouse restaurant; Carrabba's Italian Grill, a casual Italian restaurant; Bonefish Grill; and Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, a contemporary steakhouse.