Short Interest in The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Decreases By 22.9%

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,230,000 shares, a decrease of 22.9% from the May 31st total of 13,270,000 shares. Currently, 5.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,730,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Insider Transactions at Wendy’s

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

Institutional Trading of Wendy’s

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Highlander Capital Management LLC grew its position in Wendy’s by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 378.0% in the first quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 1,568 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 1,240 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Wendy’s during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 483.2% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,872 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 1,551 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its position in shares of Wendy’s by 145.8% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,116 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 1,255 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

Wendy’s Trading Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ WEN traded up $0.02 during trading on Friday, hitting $16.96. The stock had a trading volume of 5,874,346 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,515,242. Wendy’s has a one year low of $16.22 and a one year high of $22.42. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $17.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.21, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 2.04.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.02. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 62.68% and a net margin of 9.44%. The company had revenue of $534.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $540.84 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.21 earnings per share. Wendy’s’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Wendy’s will post 1 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.90%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 3rd. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 101.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WEN has been the subject of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Wendy’s from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Wendy’s in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. They set a “sell” rating and a $16.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating and set a $19.00 price objective on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.79.

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.