Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the eleven research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a hold rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $14.50.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BLMN. StockNews.com upgraded Bloomin’ Brands from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Bloomin’ Brands from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. UBS Group lowered 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 report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Barclays set a $11.00 target price on shares of Bloomin’ Brands and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th.

Insider Activity at Bloomin’ Brands

In related news, EVP Patrick M. Hafner sold 9,555 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.32, for a total value of $79,497.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 3.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bloomin’ Brands

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. A&I Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bloomin’ Brands during the 4th quarter worth $343,000. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Bloomin’ Brands by 29.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 219,080 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,621,000 after acquiring an additional 49,723 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Bloomin’ Brands by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,414,415 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $17,270,000 after acquiring an additional 159,356 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Bloomin’ Brands by 86.0% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 381,248 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $4,655,000 after purchasing an additional 176,240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Skylands Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Bloomin’ Brands in the fourth quarter worth about $1,407,000.

Bloomin’ Brands Stock Up 1.9 %

BLMN stock opened at $7.05 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.46, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $598.76 million, a P/E ratio of -64.09 and a beta of 1.76. Bloomin’ Brands has a 52-week low of $6.09 and a 52-week high of $27.33. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $9.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $12.17.

Bloomin’ Brands Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.51%. Bloomin’ Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently -40.27%.

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.