Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,540,000 shares, a growth of 23.3% from the February 28th total of 8,550,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,080,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.1 days. Currently, 3.3% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on QSR shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Restaurant Brands International from $72.00 to $68.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. TD Cowen lowered Restaurant Brands International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, February 14th. TD Securities reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Restaurant Brands International in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Restaurant Brands International in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $77.08.

Restaurant Brands International Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of Restaurant Brands International stock traded up $1.17 during trading on Thursday, reaching $68.06. The stock had a trading volume of 1,096,235 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,776,914. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $65.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $67.18. Restaurant Brands International has a 52 week low of $59.67 and a 52 week high of $78.00. The company has a market capitalization of $22.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.72. 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 (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The restaurant operator reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.29). Restaurant Brands International had a net margin of 12.15% and a return on equity of 28.53%. Sell-side analysts predict that Restaurant Brands International will post 3.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Restaurant Brands International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This is an increase from Restaurant Brands International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.64%. Restaurant Brands International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.99%.

Insider Transactions at Restaurant Brands International

In other Restaurant Brands International news, CFO Sami A. Siddiqui sold 5,579 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.20, for a total transaction of $358,171.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 27,266 shares in the company, valued at $1,750,477.20. The trade was a 16.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Thiago T. Santelmo sold 3,511 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.20, for a total transaction of $225,406.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 32,937 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,114,555.40. The trade was a 9.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 300,226 shares of company stock valued at $19,121,223. Insiders own 1.36% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Restaurant Brands International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 43,418,188 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,829,974,000 after purchasing an additional 841,167 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 421,873 shares in the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. grew its position in Restaurant Brands International by 26.6% during the 4th quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 12,819,570 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $834,478,000 after acquiring an additional 2,695,071 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Restaurant Brands International in the fourth quarter valued at about $264,813,000. Finally, Meritage Group LP boosted its stake in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 5,795.9% during the fourth quarter. Meritage Group LP now owns 3,301,689 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $215,204,000 after purchasing an additional 3,245,689 shares in the last quarter. 82.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Restaurant Brands International Company Profile

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.