UPDATE: Raymond James Upgrades DineEquity, Inc to Strong Buy

DineEquity, Inc.

was upgraded from Outperform to Strong Buy by Raymond James Monday morning. It's price target was maintained at $95.00. Analyst Bryan C. Elliott expects dividends to rise substantially over the next several years as free cash flow is diverted from debt repayment to shareholders. For 2014 and 2015, Elliot also adjusted his model to conservatively forecast dividend growth of 10-15 percent with excess free cash flow used for debt repayment. "As long as underlying brand momentum at Applebee's and IHOP remains reasonable, meaningful FCF and cash dividend increases over the next several years should allow DIN's valuation metrics to rise markedly over that time," Elliott said. DinEquity shares are up more than 3 percent to $80.98 at last check.