Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Price Target Cut to $19.00

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its target price trimmed by Stifel Nicolaus from $20.00 to $19.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a hold rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on WEN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Wendy’s in a report on Thursday, June 13th. They issued a sell rating and a $16.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Wendy’s from $23.00 to $19.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $20.28.

Wendy’s Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WEN opened at $16.70 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.43 billion, a PE ratio of 16.87, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.76. Wendy’s has a 12-month low of $15.61 and a 12-month high of $22.42. The business has a 50 day moving average of $16.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $18.10. The company has a current ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.01.

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

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.99%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CMO Juan Carlos Loredo sold 44,806 shares of Wendy’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.50, for a total value of $873,717.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 27,586 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $537,927. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 17.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Wendy’s

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 22.2% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in Wendy’s by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 48,893 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $829,000 after buying an additional 711 shares during the period. Private Wealth Strategies L.L.C. grew its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Private Wealth Strategies L.L.C. now owns 17,867 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $348,000 after acquiring an additional 789 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in shares of Wendy’s by 5.6% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 15,170 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $286,000 after acquiring an additional 801 shares during the period. Finally, Paradigm Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Paradigm Financial Partners LLC now owns 24,355 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $474,000 after acquiring an additional 820 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.