Jim Cramer’s Biggest Winners to Buy: Top 20 AI & Other Stocks He Got Right in 2026

13. Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)

Number of Hedge Fund Holdings in Q3 2025: 51

Number of Hedge Fund Holdings in Q1 2026: 49

Performance Since Cramer’s Remarks: 13.95%

Date/Month of Cramer’s Remarks: January 6th, 2026

Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT) is a food chain that operates brands such as Chili’s and Maggiano’s. Its shares are down by 2.7% over the past year and are up by 17.3% year-to-date. As opposed to the high growth AI stocks, Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)’s shares have performed comparably well in the year’s first half. On April 29th, the shares closed 14.5% higher. On that day, the firm reported its earnings for the fiscal third quarter and posted $1.47 billion in revenue to meet analyst estimates and $2.90 in adjusted earnings to beat analyst estimates of $2.87. In January, as Cramer discussed Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT), he mentioned cattle prices:

“Look Kevin Hochman’s done a great job. The stock really dipped big when cattle prices went way up. I’m glad to see it’s coming back. I think he’s got cattle price under control. He has a $10 meal, and most people don’t have that, it’s actually pretty terrific, people should try it.”

During the third quarter earnings call, Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE:EAT)’s management also discussed the prices:

“But there’s always puts and takes, but there is going to be pressure with beef. I mean that’s clearly out there. Luckily, that’s not the total basket for us. We’re a varied menu, so we have different opportunities. Obviously, we sell a lot of chicken as well. But yes, we’re going to continue to see pressure in commodities as we move forward. It will probably be similar levels that you’ve seen us in the past or this last half of the year, we’ve had that mid-single-digit inflation. So I’m anticipating that will be something similar as we move forward into F ’27.”