Analyst Andrew Strelzik of BMO Capital reiterated a Hold rating on Brinker International, reducing the price target to $140.00.
Elevate Your Investing Strategy:
- Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence.
Andrew Strelzik has given his Hold rating due to a combination of factors impacting Brinker International’s current performance and future outlook. While Brinker International’s recent earnings exceeded expectations, driven by strong performance at Chili’s, the company faces challenges such as increased costs and pressures at Maggiano’s. Despite maintaining its fiscal year guidance, the company anticipates near-term pressures from commodity inflation and increased advertising expenses, which could impact margins.
Chili’s continues to lead the industry with impressive comparable sales growth, yet the trends are beginning to normalize, and traffic growth has decelerated. Although management is confident in achieving its mid-single-digit growth targets, Andrew Strelzik remains cautious, noting that the optimistic outlook may not fully account for the challenging comparisons ahead. The long-term turnaround potential remains promising, but the limited visibility into near-term comparable sales trends justifies the Hold rating at this time.
According to TipRanks, Strelzik is a 4-star analyst with an average return of 4.2% and a 54.40% success rate. Strelzik covers the Consumer Cyclical sector, focusing on stocks such as Domino’s Pizza, Brinker International, and Darden Restaurants.
In another report released today, TR | OpenAI – 4o also downgraded the stock to a Hold with a $135.00 price target.