New markets will spur its pandemic recovery

Article Excerpt

More regions are now re-opening their economies as the COVID-19 pandemic eases. That’s good news for fast-food operator Restaurant Brands, which aims to spur its long-term growth by expanding its overseas operations, which currently supply just 10% of its revenue. RESTAURANT BRANDS INTERNATIONAL INC. $73 is a buy for aggressive investors. The company (Toronto symbol QSR, Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 449.1 million; Market cap: $32.8 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.9; Dividend yield: 4.1%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.rbi.com) is the world’s third-largest fast-food operator after McDonald’s (No. 1) and Yum Brands (No. 2). It has 29,576 outlets in over 100 countries: 19,266 Burger King, 5,320 Tim Hortons (coffee and donuts), 3,771 Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen (fried chicken), and 1,219 Firehouse Subs. In the past few years, the company has expanded its Tim Hortons brand to countries outside of North America, including the U.K., Spain, India, Saudi Arabia, Thailand and the Philippines. Restaurant Brands typically teams up with local investors who operate the stores under a Master Franchise…