Brokerages Set Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR) Price Target at $79.19

Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-three analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have issued a hold recommendation and fourteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $79.1905.

Several analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Restaurant Brands International from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Guggenheim increased their target price on Restaurant Brands International from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $86.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Restaurant Brands International

In related news, CEO Joshua Kobza sold 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.05, for a total transaction of $15,010,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 960,769 shares in the company, valued at approximately $72,105,713.45. The trade was a 17.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Axel Schwan sold 34,939 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.51, for a total value of $2,358,731.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 194,984 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,163,369.84. This represents a 15.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 455,191 shares of company stock valued at $33,299,206. 1.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Restaurant Brands International

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 43,525,570 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,969,819,000 after buying an additional 3,095,167 shares in the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its holdings in Restaurant Brands International by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 16,645,003 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,135,844,000 after acquiring an additional 1,741,795 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Restaurant Brands International by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,983,585 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,090,684,000 after purchasing an additional 344,066 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,429,121 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $575,119,000 after purchasing an additional 1,641,870 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baupost Group LLC MA boosted its holdings in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 103.8% during the 3rd quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA now owns 8,252,862 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $529,337,000 after purchasing an additional 4,203,300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.29% of the company’s stock.

Restaurant Brands International Stock Up 0.2%

QSR opened at $76.71 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $71.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.50, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.51. Restaurant Brands International has a fifty-two week low of $58.71 and a fifty-two week high of $77.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.62, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.98.

Restaurant Brands International (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The restaurant operator reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.41 billion. Restaurant Brands International had a net margin of 8.23% and a return on equity of 32.51%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.81 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Restaurant Brands International will post 3.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Restaurant Brands International Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 19th were paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. This is an increase from Restaurant Brands International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 19th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. Restaurant Brands International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 110.17%.

About Restaurant Brands International

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.