Q3 2024 EPS Estimates for The Wendy’s Company Lowered by Zacks Research (NASDAQ:WEN)

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) – Zacks Research reduced their Q3 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Wendy’s in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, August 14th. Zacks Research analyst H. Ray now anticipates that the restaurant operator will post earnings of $0.26 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.27. The consensus estimate for Wendy’s’ current full-year earnings is $1.00 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Wendy’s’ Q4 2024 earnings at $0.22 EPS and Q3 2025 earnings at $0.27 EPS.

WEN has been the topic of several other reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Wendy’s from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup raised 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. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Wendy’s in a report on Thursday, June 13th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $16.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Wendy’s from $23.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Monday, July 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.13.

Wendy’s Stock Down 1.5 %

NASDAQ WEN opened at $16.93 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.10, 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 $21.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.01, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 2.17. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $16.82 and a 200-day moving average of $17.98.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $570.73 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $577.15 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.28 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wendy’s

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Wendy’s by 262.4% in the 4th quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC now owns 74,297 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,447,000 after buying an additional 53,794 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in shares of Wendy’s by 145.8% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,116 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,255 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,533,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew 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 worth $397,469,000 after purchasing an additional 1,273,140 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alberta Investment Management Corp acquired a new stake in Wendy’s during the fourth quarter worth about $1,027,000. Institutional investors own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Wendy’s

In other news, Director Matthew H. Peltz sold 1,000,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.18, for a total transaction of $17,180,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,943,466 shares in the company, valued at approximately $256,728,745.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 17.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

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 given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 101.01%.

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.