Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Given New $17.00 Price Target at Stifel Nicolaus

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its target price cut by Stifel Nicolaus from $18.00 to $17.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on WEN. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Wendy’s from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wolfe Research raised shares of Wendy’s to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $20.00 price target on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.04.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

Shares of Wendy’s stock opened at $14.94 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.64. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $17.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.50. Wendy’s has a 12 month low of $14.89 and a 12 month high of $20.65.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25. Wendy’s had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 70.02%. The company had revenue of $566.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $560.50 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.27 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Wendy’s will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.69%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 105.26%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wendy’s

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEN. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 16.9% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 711,267 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $12,461,000 after buying an additional 102,769 shares in the last quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 98.2% during the second quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 176,144 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,987,000 after acquiring an additional 87,254 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 90.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 109,747 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,923,000 after acquiring an additional 52,225 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Wendy’s in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,659,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the 3rd quarter valued at $763,000. 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.