Bloomin’ Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN) Upgraded to Hold at StockNews.com

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

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $19.00 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Bloomin’ Brands from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Bloomin’ Brands from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $16.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded shares of Bloomin’ Brands from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $15.00.

Bloomin’ Brands Stock Performance

NASDAQ BLMN opened at $8.79 on Friday. Bloomin’ Brands has a 52-week low of $8.00 and a 52-week high of $29.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $746.54 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -79.90 and a beta of 2.04. The company’s fifty day moving average is $11.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $13.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.46, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Bloomin’ Brands news, EVP Patrick M. Hafner sold 9,555 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.32, for a total value of $79,497.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 3.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bloomin’ Brands

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of Bloomin’ Brands during the 4th quarter worth about $3,519,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Bloomin’ Brands during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP bought a new position in shares of Bloomin’ Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $1,552,000. Two Sigma Investments LP grew its position in Bloomin’ Brands by 160.9% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 401,697 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $4,905,000 after acquiring an additional 247,702 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming grew its holdings in shares of Bloomin’ Brands by 99.5% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 10,319 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 5,146 shares during the last quarter.

About Bloomin’ Brands

Bloomin’ Brands, Inc engages in the acquisition, operation, design, and development of restaurant concepts. It operates through the U.S. and International geographical segments. The U.S. segment operates in the USA and Puerto Rico. The International segment operates in Brazil, South Korea, Hong Kong, and China.