Empirical Finance LLC Invests $687,000 in Brinker International, Inc. $EAT

Empirical Finance LLC bought a new stake in Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 4,091 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $687,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in Brinker International by 58.5% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 225 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Brinker International by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 2,047 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $294,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Brinker International by 0.5% during the second quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC now owns 20,669 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $3,472,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC raised its holdings in shares of Brinker International by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 4,123 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $592,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the period. Finally, Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its position in shares of Brinker International by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 6,511 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $934,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Joseph DePinto sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.39, for a total transaction of $5,759,750.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 77,812 shares in the company, valued at $17,927,106.68. The trade was a 24.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Michaela Ware sold 3,030 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.48, for a total transaction of $707,444.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 17,494 shares in the company, valued at $4,084,499.12. This represents a 14.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 173,694 shares of company stock worth $41,568,690 over the last ninety days. 1.43% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Brinker International Price Performance

Brinker International stock opened at $214.95 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $213.79 and its 200 day moving average is $170.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.45 and a quick ratio of 0.40. Brinker International, Inc. has a one year low of $100.30 and a one year high of $254.99. The firm has a market cap of $8.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.25.

Brinker International (NYSE:EAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 12th. The restaurant operator reported $3.07 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.09 by ($0.02). Brinker International had a return on equity of 122.35% and a net margin of 8.39%.The firm had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.30 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Brinker International has set its FY 2027 guidance at 12.600-13.400 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Brinker International, Inc. will post 13.24 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on EAT shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Brinker International from $190.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Brinker International from $175.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Brinker International from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Brinker International from $166.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price objective on Brinker International from $220.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $244.30.

About Brinker International

Brinker International, Inc is a Dallas-based restaurant company that owns, operates and franchises casual dining restaurants. Its portfolio includes Chili’s Grill & Bar, a full-service restaurant brand known for burgers, fajitas, ribs, steaks, Tex-Mex dishes and a broad beverage menu, and Maggiano’s Little Italy, which specializes in Italian-American cuisine and family-style dining.

Chili’s restaurants serve a wide range of lunch and dinner offerings in a casual, bar-and-grill setting, while Maggiano’s locations offer traditional Italian dishes, including pasta, chicken, seafood and desserts.