Alerus Financial NA Grows Stake in Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR)

Alerus Financial NA raised its position in shares of Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) by 4.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 96,301 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,884 shares during the quarter. Alerus Financial NA’s holdings in Restaurant Brands International were worth $6,277,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in QSR. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Restaurant Brands International in the fourth quarter valued at $264,813,000. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 68.6% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 3,181,459 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $229,545,000 after purchasing an additional 1,294,185 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new position in shares of Restaurant Brands International in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $89,790,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 282.6% during the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,465,709 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $105,707,000 after buying an additional 1,082,622 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Restaurant Brands International by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,165,498 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $858,101,000 after purchasing an additional 421,873 shares during the last quarter. 82.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Sami A. Siddiqui sold 5,579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.20, for a total value of $358,171.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,750,477.20. This represents a 16.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Duncan Fulton sold 27,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.66, for a total transaction of $1,778,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,822 shares in the company, valued at $2,251,590.52. The trade was a 44.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 300,226 shares of company stock worth $19,121,223. Company insiders own 1.36% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on QSR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Restaurant Brands International from $80.00 to $78.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Guggenheim raised shares of Restaurant Brands International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $74.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $83.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $86.00 to $77.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Restaurant Brands International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.08.

Restaurant Brands International Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE QSR opened at $68.73 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $64.80 and its 200-day moving average is $67.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.33 billion, a PE ratio of 21.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.75. Restaurant Brands International Inc. has a 1 year low of $59.67 and a 1 year high of $80.02.

Restaurant Brands International (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The restaurant operator reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.29). Restaurant Brands International had a return on equity of 28.53% and a net margin of 12.15%. Equities analysts expect that Restaurant Brands International Inc. will post 3.72 EPS for the current year.

Restaurant Brands International Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a $0.62 dividend. This is a boost from Restaurant Brands International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. Restaurant Brands International’s payout ratio is 77.99%.

About Restaurant Brands International

Restaurant Brands International Inc operates as a quick-service restaurant company in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Tim Hortons (TH), Burger King (BK), Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen (PLK), and Firehouse Subs (FHS). The company owns and franchises TH chain of donut/coffee/tea restaurants that offer blend coffee, tea, and espresso-based hot and cold specialty drinks; and fresh baked goods, including donuts, Timbits, bagels, muffins, cookies and pastries, grilled paninis, classic sandwiches, wraps, soups, and other food products.