Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN)

Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 27,240 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $399,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its position in Wendy's by 84,261.8% in the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 596,438 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $8,726,000 after buying an additional 595,731 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Wendy's during the 1st quarter worth $326,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Wendy's in the 4th quarter worth about $4,318,000. Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in Wendy's by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 39,072 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $637,000 after acquiring an additional 3,522 shares during the period. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Wendy's by 168.1% during the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 76,235 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $1,115,000 after purchasing an additional 47,795 shares during the last quarter. 85.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wendy's Price Performance

Shares of WEN traded down $0.27 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $11.02. The stock had a trading volume of 7,334,426 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,662,790. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 24.88. The company has a market capitalization of $2.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.34. The company's 50-day moving average is $11.69 and its 200 day moving average is $13.59. The Wendy's Company has a 12-month low of $10.91 and a 12-month high of $20.60.

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.20. The business had revenue of $523.47 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $530.11 million. Wendy's had a return on equity of 85.36% and a net margin of 8.57%. Wendy's's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.23 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that The Wendy's Company will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wendy's Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.08%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. Wendy's's payout ratio is 59.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on WEN shares. Loop Capital dropped their price target on shares of Wendy's from $26.00 to $21.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Wendy's from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Guggenheim lowered Wendy's from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Wendy's from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $17.00 to $15.00 in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, TD Securities cut their target price on Wendy's from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $16.24.

Insider Transactions at Wendy's

In related news, insider Abigail E. Pringle sold 136,819 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.81, for a total value of $1,752,651.39. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 203,005 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,600,494.05. This trade represents a 40.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CMO Lindsay J. Radkoski acquired 5,050 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $11.68 per share, with a total value of $58,984.00. Following the acquisition, the chief marketing officer owned 28,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $338,206.08. This trade represents a 21.12% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 17.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wendy's 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.