Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Price Target Lowered to $16.00 at Stifel Nicolaus

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its price target trimmed by Stifel Nicolaus from $17.00 to $16.00 in a research note published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a hold rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $15.00 price target on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $14.00 price target (down previously from $22.00) on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Wendy’s from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays reduced their price target on Wendy’s from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Wedbush increased their target price on Wendy’s from $15.50 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $18.88.

Wendy’s Stock Up 3.5 %

Wendy’s stock opened at $15.51 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.16 billion, a PE ratio of 16.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a current ratio of 1.85. Wendy’s has a one year low of $13.72 and a one year high of $20.65. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $15.39 and a 200 day moving average of $17.07.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $574.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $564.17 million. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 75.56% and a net margin of 8.65%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Wendy’s will post 1.01 EPS for the current year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.45%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 105.26%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wendy’s

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Wendy’s by 670.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,402 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 1,220 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Wendy’s during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Colonial Trust Co SC purchased a new position in shares of Wendy’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 168.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,233 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares during the period. Finally, AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Wendy’s in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

About Wendy’s

The Wendy’s Co engages in operating, developing, and franchising a system of quick-service restaurants. It offers hamburgers and related products, such as chicken breast sandwiches, nuggets, chili, and baked potatoes, French fries, freshly prepared salads, soft drinks, milk, coffee, frosty deserts, and kid’s meals.