The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Stock Has Average Target Price of $7.75 According to Analysts

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the nineteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have issued a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $7.69.

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Seaport Research Partners began coverage on Wendy’s in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $8.00 price target on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Monday, August 10th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Stephens lowered their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday.

Wendy’s Stock Up 4.0%

WEN stock opened at $6.70 on Tuesday. Wendy’s has a one year low of $5.94 and a one year high of $10.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a PE ratio of 10.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 27.95, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 1.90. The company has a fifty day moving average of $7.44 and a 200-day moving average of $7.35.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 7th. The restaurant operator reported $0.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $570.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $557.13 million. Wendy’s had a net margin of 5.72% and a return on equity of 115.31%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.29 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Wendy’s will post 0.49 EPS for the current year.

Wendy’s Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st were given a $0.07 dividend. This is a negative change from Wendy’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. Wendy’s’s payout ratio is currently 42.42%.

Institutional Trading of Wendy’s

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Trian Fund Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Wendy’s during the 2nd quarter worth about $252,583,000. BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 21.1% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 26,314,724 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $218,149,000 after buying an additional 4,576,075 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Wendy’s by 20.1% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,566,985 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $54,440,000 after buying an additional 1,101,063 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in shares of Wendy’s by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,493,752 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $31,232,000 after purchasing an additional 236,541 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in Wendy’s during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,062,000. Institutional investors own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

About Wendy’s

Wendy’s Co (NASDAQ: WEN) operates and franchises the Wendy’s quick-service restaurant chain. Its menu primarily features hamburgers made with fresh, never-frozen beef, along with chicken sandwiches, nuggets, salads, french fries, breakfast items, beverages and the signature Frosty dessert.

Founded by Dave Thomas in Columbus, Ohio, in 1969, Wendy’s has grown into an international restaurant brand. The company serves customers through a network of company-operated and franchised restaurants, with a significant presence in the United States and additional locations in international markets.

In addition to restaurant sales, Wendy’s supports ordering through digital channels, including its mobile application and website, as well as delivery services.