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

Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,850,000 shares, a drop of 17.1% from the November 30th total of 8,260,000 shares. Approximately 2.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,560,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.4 days.

Insider Activity at Restaurant Brands International

In other news, insider Jill Granat sold 81,387 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.37, for a total transaction of $5,645,816.19. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 388,759 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,968,211.83. This represents a 17.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Restaurant Brands International

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 4,318 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $311,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its holdings in Restaurant Brands International by 2.2% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 8,412 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $607,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 79.4% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 418 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Arvest Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Arvest Investments Inc. now owns 18,450 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,331,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 17.8% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,754 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the period. 82.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Argus cut their price objective on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. TD Cowen cut their price target on Restaurant Brands International from $82.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Restaurant Brands International from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $76.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Restaurant Brands International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $82.27.

Restaurant Brands International Stock Performance

Shares of QSR stock traded down $0.30 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $65.54. The stock had a trading volume of 559,304 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,608,200. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.75, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.22 billion, a PE ratio of 16.43, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.93. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $69.00 and its 200 day moving average is $69.82. Restaurant Brands International has a twelve month low of $64.69 and a twelve month high of $83.29.

Restaurant Brands International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.54%. Restaurant Brands International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.15%.

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.