Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Earns “Equal Weight” Rating from Stephens

Stephens restated their equal weight rating on shares of Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $20.00 price objective on the restaurant operator’s stock.

WEN has been the topic of a number of other reports. Citigroup raised their price target on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Wendy’s from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Loop Capital restated a buy rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $19.00 to $17.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $20.28.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

Wendy’s stock opened at $16.88 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.01, a current ratio of 2.17 and a quick ratio of 2.02. The stock has a market cap of $3.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.76. Wendy’s has a 1-year low of $15.61 and a 1-year high of $22.42.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $570.73 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $577.15 million. Wendy’s had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 67.74%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.28 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Wendy’s will post 1 EPS for the current year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Wendy’s

In other news, CMO Juan Carlos Loredo sold 44,806 shares of the company’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 owns 27,586 shares in the company, valued at $537,927. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 17.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Wendy’s

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

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.