Restaurant Brands International (NYSE:QSR) CFO Sells $65,888.88 in Stock

Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) CFO Sami Siddiqui sold 977 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.44, for a total value of $65,888.88. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 12,116 shares in the company, valued at approximately $817,103.04. This represents a 7.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Restaurant Brands International Trading Up 1.8%

QSR traded up $1.20 during trading on Thursday, reaching $68.66. 2,935,851 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,435,567. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $69.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $67.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.52 billion, a PE ratio of 24.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.59. Restaurant Brands International Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $58.71 and a fifty-two week high of $73.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Restaurant Brands International (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.03. Restaurant Brands International had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 32.43%. The business had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.93 EPS. Restaurant Brands International’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Restaurant Brands International Inc. will post 3.72 EPS for the current year.

Restaurant Brands International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 23rd were paid a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 23rd. Restaurant Brands International’s payout ratio is presently 88.26%.

Restaurant Brands International News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Restaurant Brands International this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target from $78 to $86 and moved to an “overweight” rating, signaling stronger upside (about ~25% from recent levels). This is a direct catalyst for positive sentiment. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital issued a buy on QSR, adding another institutional endorsement that supports demand for the shares. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Aggregate analyst sentiment is tilted bullish — roughly 60% of analysts are positive with a median price target around $77.50, implying notable upside vs. current levels. That improves conviction among growth/value investors. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks highlights rising beef costs as a near-term headwind to Burger King U.S. margins; the company calls the cost pressure cyclical but it could compress profits in upcoming quarters. Monitor commodity trends and margin guidance. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple insiders (including CEO Joshua Kobza and CFO Sami Siddiqui) disclosed share sales on Jan. 7 — about 10 insiders sold small portions of their holdings, totaling roughly $0.9M. The individual reductions were generally modest (fractions of their positions), but clustered insider selling can be read as a short-term negative by some investors. Read More.

Institutional Trading of Restaurant Brands International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Restaurant Brands International by 2.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,639,519 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,003,301,000 after purchasing an additional 335,793 shares during the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 14,903,208 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $955,855,000 after buying an additional 1,983,354 shares during the last quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA grew its stake in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 103.8% in the third quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 8,252,862 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $529,337,000 after buying an additional 4,203,300 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Restaurant Brands International by 0.3% during the third quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 5,505,861 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $353,284,000 after buying an additional 18,964 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp increased its holdings in Restaurant Brands International by 17.2% during the third quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 4,946,163 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $317,191,000 after buying an additional 724,540 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Restaurant Brands International from $78.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $86.00 price target on shares of Restaurant Brands International in a report on Wednesday. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Argus upgraded Restaurant Brands International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.18.

Restaurant Brands International Company Profile

Restaurant Brands International Inc (NYSE: QSR) is a global quick-service restaurant company formed through the combination of established brands. The company’s principal holdings include Burger King, Tim Hortons and Popeyes, each of which operates under its own brand identity and menu. Restaurant Brands International’s business is centered on developing and expanding these franchised restaurant systems, supporting franchisees with brand management, supply chain coordination, and marketing programs.

RBI’s restaurants offer a range of quick-service food and beverage products: Burger King is known for its flame-grilled hamburgers and sandwiches, Tim Hortons for coffee, baked goods and breakfast items, and Popeyes for Louisiana-style fried chicken and seafood.