Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,899 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after buying an additional 233 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Restaurant Brands International were worth $319,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of QSR. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in Restaurant Brands International by 68.6% during the third 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 during the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new stake in Restaurant Brands International during the third quarter worth about $89,790,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in 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 purchasing an additional 1,082,622 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in Restaurant Brands International by 848.9% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 370,973 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,756,000 after purchasing an additional 331,880 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in Restaurant Brands International by 16.2% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 2,207,251 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $159,251,000 after purchasing an additional 307,791 shares during the last quarter. 82.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

QSR has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. CIBC cut their price objective on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $86.00 to $78.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $83.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Argus upgraded shares of Restaurant Brands International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $81.00 to $73.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their price target on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $86.00 to $77.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $77.33.

Restaurant Brands International Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of Restaurant Brands International stock opened at $68.07 on Thursday. Restaurant Brands International Inc. has a 52-week low of $59.67 and a 52-week high of $81.27. The company has a 50 day moving average of $64.02 and a 200 day moving average of $67.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.75. The company has a market capitalization of $22.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.95.

Restaurant Brands International (NYSE:QSR) (TSE:QSR) last issued its quarterly 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%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Restaurant Brands International Inc. will post 3.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Restaurant Brands International Increases Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. This is an increase from Restaurant Brands International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. Restaurant Brands International’s payout ratio is currently 77.99%.

Insider Transactions at Restaurant Brands International

In other news, insider Thiago T. Santelmo sold 3,511 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.20, for a total transaction of $225,406.20. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Sami A. Siddiqui sold 5,579 shares of the business’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 transaction of $358,171.80. Following the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 287,726 shares of company stock worth $18,269,723. 1.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Restaurant Brands International 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.