Arcos Dorados (NYSE:ARCO) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. (NYSE:ARCO - Get Free Report) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $7.97, but opened at $7.71. Arcos Dorados shares last traded at $7.74, with a volume of 549,252 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on ARCO. Wall Street Zen cut Arcos Dorados from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Arcos Dorados from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $10.50 to $8.80 in a research note on Wednesday.

Arcos Dorados Stock Up 0.8%

The firm's 50-day moving average price is $7.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $7.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The company has a market capitalization of $1.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.09 and a beta of 0.63.

Arcos Dorados (NYSE:ARCO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 14th. The restaurant operator reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.13 by ($0.06). Arcos Dorados had a net margin of 3.00% and a return on equity of 26.70%. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.14 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. will post 0.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arcos Dorados Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 25th were issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 24th. This represents a dividend yield of 3.13%. Arcos Dorados's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.92%.

Institutional Trading of Arcos Dorados

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Arcos Dorados during the first quarter worth about $73,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Arcos Dorados by 17.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 12,272 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 1,830 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Arcos Dorados during the 4th quarter worth approximately $90,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Arcos Dorados during the 4th quarter worth approximately $90,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd lifted its stake in Arcos Dorados by 60.3% in the 1st quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 11,800 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 4,440 shares during the last quarter. 55.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Arcos Dorados

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc operates as a franchisee of McDonald's restaurants. It has the exclusive right to own, operate, and grant franchises of McDonald's restaurants in 20 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean, including Argentina, Aruba, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Curacao, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, the U.S.