The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $17.97.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WEN. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Wendy’s from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $15.50 to $16.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $14.00 price target (down from $22.00) on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Wendy’s from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Wendy’s from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th.

Wendy’s Price Performance

NASDAQ:WEN opened at $12.68 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.35, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a 50-day moving average of $14.55 and a 200-day moving average of $16.31. Wendy’s has a 52 week low of $12.05 and a 52 week high of $20.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a current ratio of 1.85.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. Wendy’s had a net margin of 8.65% and a return on equity of 75.56%. The firm had revenue of $574.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $564.17 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Wendy’s will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Wendy’s’s payout ratio is 105.26%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wendy’s

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WEN. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Wendy’s by 670.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,402 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,220 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Wendy’s during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Colonial Trust Co SC bought a new position in Wendy’s during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in Wendy’s by 1,111.9% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,133 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,957 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 168.1% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,233 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. 85.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wendy’s Company Profile

The Wendy’s Co engages in operating, developing, and franchising a system of quick-service restaurants. It operates through the following segments: Wendy’s U.S., Wendy’s International, and Global Real Estate and Development. The Wendy’s U.S. segment includes the operation and franchising of Wendy’s restaurants in the U.S.