Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 9,420,000 shares, an increase of 9.3% from the August 15th total of 8,620,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,690,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.6 days. Approximately 11.4% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on BLMN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $26.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Bloomin’ Brands from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. StockNews.com lowered Bloomin’ Brands from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Bloomin’ Brands from $27.00 to $20.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Bloomin’ Brands presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.33.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bloomin’ Brands

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BLMN. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Bloomin’ Brands by 0.7% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,553,719 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $49,105,000 after acquiring an additional 16,878 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Bloomin’ Brands by 29.6% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,492,119 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $47,923,000 after purchasing an additional 569,855 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bloomin’ Brands by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,381,235 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $45,791,000 after buying an additional 6,107 shares during the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. bought a new position in Bloomin’ Brands during the second quarter valued at about $28,672,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in Bloomin’ Brands by 3.8% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,125,008 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $32,267,000 after buying an additional 41,128 shares during the last quarter.

Bloomin’ Brands Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BLMN traded up $0.31 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $17.41. 547,811 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,472,202. Bloomin’ Brands has a 12 month low of $15.20 and a 12 month high of $30.13. The company has a market cap of $1.51 billion, a PE ratio of 27.25 and a beta of 2.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.46, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $17.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.96.

Bloomin’ Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The restaurant operator reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.13 billion. Bloomin’ Brands had a net margin of 0.70% and a return on equity of 61.90%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.74 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Bloomin’ Brands will post 2.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bloomin’ Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.51%. Bloomin’ Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 150.00%.

About Bloomin’ Brands

Bloomin' Brands, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates casual, upscale casual, and fine dining restaurants in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, U.S. and International. Its restaurant portfolio has four concepts, including Outback Steakhouse, a casual steakhouse restaurant; Carrabba's Italian Grill, a casual Italian restaurant; Bonefish Grill; and Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, a contemporary steakhouse.