Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Given “Neutral” Rating at Wedbush

Wedbush reissued their neutral rating on shares of Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) in a report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $19.50 price objective on the restaurant operator’s stock.

WEN has been the topic of several other reports. Truist Financial decreased 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Monday, June 3rd. Loop Capital reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on 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. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Wendy’s presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $20.28.

Wendy’s Trading Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ WEN opened at $16.88 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.01. The firm has a market cap of $3.46 billion, a PE ratio of 17.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.76. Wendy’s has a 52 week low of $15.61 and a 52 week high of $22.42. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $16.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $18.11.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $570.73 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $577.15 million. Wendy’s had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 67.74%. Wendy’s’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.28 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Wendy’s will post 1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.92%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 101.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CMO Juan Carlos Loredo sold 44,806 shares of the firm’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 sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 27,586 shares in the company, valued at $537,927. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 17.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wendy’s

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WEN. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,097,095 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $397,469,000 after acquiring an additional 1,273,140 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Wendy’s by 2.1% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,344,118 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $100,683,000 after buying an additional 111,626 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Wendy’s by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,706,052 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $91,674,000 after acquiring an additional 31,341 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Wendy’s by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,141,024 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $80,668,000 after buying an additional 63,927 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in Wendy’s by 2.1% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,321,275 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $62,571,000 after acquiring an additional 68,356 shares during the period. 85.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wendy’s Company Profile

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.