Arcos Dorados (NYSE:ARCO) Reaches New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. (NYSE:ARCO) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $9.00 and last traded at $8.9950, with a volume of 311539 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $8.67.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on ARCO shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Arcos Dorados in a research note on Monday, December 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Arcos Dorados in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $8.70.

Arcos Dorados Trading Up 3.5%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $8.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $7.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

Arcos Dorados (NYSE:ARCO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $1.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.26 billion. Arcos Dorados had a return on equity of 8.12% and a net margin of 4.53%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.28 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. will post 0.63 EPS for the current year.

Arcos Dorados Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 23rd. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Arcos Dorados’s dividend payout ratio is 23.76%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arcos Dorados

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in Arcos Dorados by 23.1% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 538,925 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $4,344,000 after buying an additional 101,301 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Arcos Dorados by 58.3% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 309,785 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,497,000 after buying an additional 114,034 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Arcos Dorados in the second quarter worth about $1,315,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Arcos Dorados by 213.3% during the 2nd quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 50,077 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $395,000 after acquiring an additional 34,094 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nebula Research & Development LLC boosted its stake in shares of Arcos Dorados by 6.3% during the 2nd quarter. Nebula Research & Development LLC now owns 166,767 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,316,000 after acquiring an additional 9,892 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.91% of the company’s stock.

Arcos Dorados Company Profile

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc is the largest independent McDonald’s franchisee in the world, operating under an exclusive license agreement with McDonald’s Corporation. The company develops, owns and operates quick-service restaurants, offering the full McDonald’s menu, including hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, sides, desserts and McCafé beverages. In addition to restaurant operations, Arcos Dorados manages supply chain logistics, property development, training and support services for its franchise network.

Headquartered in Montevideo, Uruguay, Arcos Dorados serves 20 markets across Latin America and the Caribbean, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Uruguay.