Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Earns Equal Weight Rating from Stephens

Stephens reiterated their equal weight rating on shares of Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) in a report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $20.00 target price on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on WEN. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Wendy’s from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Wendy’s from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Loop Capital reaffirmed a buy rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Wendy’s from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $20.28.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WEN opened at $16.88 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $18.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.01, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 2.17. Wendy’s has a fifty-two week low of $15.61 and a fifty-two week high of $22.42. The company has a market capitalization of $3.46 billion, a PE ratio of 17.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.76.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.01). Wendy’s had a return on equity of 67.74% and a net margin of 9.18%. The business had revenue of $570.73 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $577.15 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.28 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Wendy’s will post 1 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.92%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio is 101.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CMO Juan Carlos Loredo sold 44,806 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.50, for a total transaction of $873,717.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 27,586 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $537,927. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 17.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Wendy’s

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WEN. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Wendy’s by 22.2% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,220 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Private Wealth Strategies L.L.C. boosted its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Private Wealth Strategies L.L.C. now owns 17,867 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $348,000 after purchasing an additional 789 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in Wendy’s by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 15,170 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 801 shares during the period. Paradigm Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Paradigm Financial Partners LLC now owns 24,355 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $474,000 after buying an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 58.0% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,352 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 863 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

About Wendy’s

The Wendy's Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a quick-service restaurant company in the United States and internationally. It operates through Wendy's U.S., Wendy's International, and Global Real Estate & Development segments. The company is involved in operating, developing, and franchising a system of quick-service restaurants specializing in hamburger sandwiches.