Brinker International rises 12.2% after upbeat fiscal first-quarter results

What happened

Brinker International (EAT) rose 12.2% on October 28, 2026, because it reported fiscal first-quarter results that topped estimates and updated fiscal 2027 guidance. The company reported revenue of $1.476 billion and adjusted diluted earnings per share of $2.77 against $2.45 expected, and discussed results on an earnings call the same day. News outlets Benzinga and Seeking Alpha summarized the release and call.

How big was the move

The stock rose 12.2% on the day and rose 17.4% over the last five sessions, with trading volume 2.8 times its 20-day average. The move was 3.7 times a typical daily move for this stock and was 12.1 percentage points better than the Consumer Cyclical sector median on the day. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% on the day while the S&P 500 over five sessions fell 0.2%, underscoring that the stock’s jump was company-specific because of the results. The stock opened 5.2% above the previous close, and its market value was $7.65 billion at the session close.

The technical picture

Technically, the stock is 12.6% above its 20-day moving average and 5.0% above its 50-day moving average, and 26.9% above its 200-day moving average. The 50-day average is above the 200-day average, a sign of an established uptrend, and the stock has spent 100 consecutive trading days above the 200-day average. The Relative Strength Index (14 days) is 63, in a neutral range between 30 and 70, and the stock is 13.4% below the 52-week high. Momentum measures show the stock rose 10.9% over one month and rose 5.2% over three months, and is up 74.9% over one year, placing it 62.3 percentage points ahead of the S&P 500 for that period.

Fundamentals and valuation

For the four quarters through September 23, 2026, the company reported revenue of $5.93 billion, which grew 6.1% from a year earlier, and diluted earnings per share of $11.34, which rose 17.6% from a year earlier. Gross margin was 3.9% (a year earlier: 32.6%), operating margin was 11.0% (a year earlier: 10.3%), and free-cash-flow margin was 10.1%. Return on invested capital was 22.8%, and the balance sheet shows net debt of 2.0 times EBITDA. Share count over one year decreased by 6.1%, which helped lift per-share metrics.

On valuation, the stock trades at 19.5 times trailing earnings and 16.6 times expected earnings, with a free-cash-flow yield of 7.9%. Its price to trailing earnings is higher than 67% of its own readings over the past five years (five-year median: 15.9 times earnings). PromtFinance scores rank Growth 66 (Positive), Quality 76 (Positive) and Momentum 93 (Exceptional), while Revisions is 36 (Weak).

Earnings and analyst expectations

Brinker reported October 28, 2026, earnings per share of $2.77 against $2.45 expected, 13.1% above estimates. Revenue for the quarter was $1.476 billion and adjusted diluted EPS of $2.77 was up from $1.93 a year earlier. Chili's achieved its 22nd consecutive quarter of same-store sales growth, rising 10%, and management updated its fiscal 2027 guidance on the call. The company has recorded one consecutive quarter beating estimates per session data, and its average surprise over the last four reports is 6.9% above estimates.

Analysts have a consensus price target of $252.50, which is 14.4% above the closing price, based on 49 analysts with ratings; 57% of those ratings are Buy or Strong Buy and the consensus rating is Buy. The stock’s typical two-day reaction after recent reports has been that the stock rose 4.1%.

What to watch

• Next report: November 4, 2026
• Consensus price target: $252.50 (14.4% above the closing price)
• Revenue for the four quarters through September 23, 2026: $5.93 billion
• Net debt of 2.0 times EBITDA
• Chili's same-store sales growth in the quarter: 10%