Restaurant Brands International Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:QSR)

Key Points

• Options activity surged: Traders bought 20,187 QSR call options, roughly 785% above the typical daily volume of 2,282 contracts.
• Analysts remain broadly positive: Restaurant Brands International has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $83.71, despite several recent target reductions.
• Shares declined 1.8% to $69.79 while the company maintained its quarterly dividend at $0.65 per share, equivalent to a 3.7% annualized yield.

Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE:QSR - Get Free Report) TSE: QSR was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock traders bought 20,187 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 785% compared to the typical daily volume of 2,282 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling at Restaurant Brands International

In other Restaurant Brands International news, insider Axel Schwan sold 57,574 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.14, for a total transaction of $4,671,554.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 209,908 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,031,935.12. This represents a 21.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.22% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Restaurant Brands International

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Platinum Paramount Investment LTD. acquired a new stake in shares of Restaurant Brands International in the 4th quarter worth about $281,033,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Restaurant Brands International during the 4th quarter valued at about $260,709,000. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Restaurant Brands International by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 43,525,570 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,969,819,000 after purchasing an additional 3,095,167 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Restaurant Brands International by 143.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,932,662 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $364,524,000 after purchasing an additional 2,910,454 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Restaurant Brands International by 16.2% in the first quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 19,348,137 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $1,432,015,000 after purchasing an additional 2,703,134 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.29% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on QSR. Scotiabank lowered their target price on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Scotia cut their price target on shares of Restaurant Brands International from $83.00 to $81.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Restaurant Brands International from $82.00 to $78.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $85.00 price objective on Restaurant Brands International and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Restaurant Brands International from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $83.71.

Restaurant Brands International Stock Down 1.8%

NYSE:QSR traded down $1.29 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $69.79. The company had a trading volume of 894,727 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,206,540. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.49. The firm has a market cap of $24.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.51. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $75.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $75.50. Restaurant Brands International has a twelve month low of $64.52 and a twelve month high of $81.96.

Restaurant Brands International (NYSE:QSR - Get Free Report) TSE: QSR last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The restaurant operator reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. Restaurant Brands International had a net margin of 13.12% and a return on equity of 33.43%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.94 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Restaurant Brands International will post 4.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Restaurant Brands International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 18th will be issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 18th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. Restaurant Brands International's dividend payout ratio is presently 69.89%.

About Restaurant Brands International

Restaurant Brands International Inc NYSE: QSR is a global quick-service restaurant company that owns and operates a portfolio of well-known restaurant brands. Its principal brands are Burger King, Tim Hortons, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen and Firehouse Subs, which serve customers through company-operated and franchised restaurants.

The company's brands offer a range of products, including hamburgers, chicken sandwiches and meals, coffee and baked goods, fried and Louisiana-style chicken, and specialty subs.

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