Restaurant Brands International (NYSE:QSR) Reaches New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $80.72 and last traded at $80.8120, with a volume of 197931 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $79.00.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Restaurant Brands International in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Piper Sandler raised Restaurant Brands International from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $71.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. KeyCorp raised their price target on Restaurant Brands International from $78.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Restaurant Brands International in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Restaurant Brands International from $86.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Restaurant Brands International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $80.35.

Restaurant Brands International Stock Up 2.1%

The stock has a market capitalization of $27.99 billion, a PE ratio of 34.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.51. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $73.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $70.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.62.

Restaurant Brands International (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The restaurant operator reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.41 billion. Restaurant Brands International had a return on equity of 32.51% and a net margin of 8.23%.Restaurant Brands International’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.81 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Restaurant Brands International Inc. will post 4.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Restaurant Brands International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 19th were issued a $0.65 dividend. This is a positive change from Restaurant Brands International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 19th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Restaurant Brands International’s payout ratio is currently 110.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Restaurant Brands International

In related news, insider Jeffrey Housman sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.48, for a total transaction of $1,469,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 162,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,909,417.96. This represents a 10.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Thiago T. Santelmo sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.41, for a total transaction of $754,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 78,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,924,209.60. This represents a 11.29% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 441,490 shares of company stock valued at $32,375,140. Corporate insiders own 1.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Restaurant Brands International

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of QSR. Intact Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Restaurant Brands International by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 759,391 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $48,722,000 after buying an additional 72,800 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 23,154.1% in the third quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 39,532 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,535,000 after acquiring an additional 39,362 shares in the last quarter. Machina Capital S.A.S. purchased a new position in Restaurant Brands International in the third quarter valued at about $1,214,000. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Restaurant Brands International by 15.4% in the third quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 14,903,208 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $955,855,000 after purchasing an additional 1,983,354 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp grew its stake in Restaurant Brands International by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 4,946,163 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $317,191,000 after purchasing an additional 724,540 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.29% of the company’s stock.

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.