Raymond James Financial Inc. Purchases Shares of 236,060 Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 236,060 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $2,882,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Bloomin’ Brands in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Bloomin’ Brands during the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bloomin’ Brands in the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Bloomin’ Brands by 606.6% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,890 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 4,198 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Bloomin’ Brands during the 4th quarter worth about $140,000.

Bloomin’ Brands Stock Performance

Shares of BLMN stock opened at $8.26 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.46. Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. has a 12-month low of $6.09 and a 12-month high of $27.09. The business’s 50 day moving average is $8.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.53. The company has a market capitalization of $701.53 million, a P/E ratio of -75.08 and a beta of 1.76.

Bloomin’ Brands Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.26%. Bloomin’ Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently -40.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Bloomin’ Brands from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $16.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $11.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Bloomin’ Brands has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $14.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Patrick M. Hafner sold 9,555 shares of Bloomin’ Brands stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.32, for a total value of $79,497.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 3.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Bloomin’ Brands Company Profile

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.