Gradient Investments LLC Purchases 48,736 Shares of The Wendy's Company $WEN

Key Points

• Gradient Investments LLC has increased its stake in The Wendy's Company by 6.2%, acquiring an additional 48,736 shares to hold a total of 836,626 shares, valued at approximately $9.55 million.
• The company reported earnings of $0.29 per share for the last quarter, surpassing analyst estimates of $0.25, but its revenue dropped 1.7% year-over-year, totaling $560.93 million.
• Wendy's announced a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend of $0.56 and a yield of 5.8%, with the record date set for September 2nd.

Gradient Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 836,626 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after acquiring an additional 48,736 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC owned approximately 0.44% of Wendy's worth $9,554,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Wendy's by 7.4% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,767,723 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $99,012,000 after acquiring an additional 464,444 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Wendy's by 5.9% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,577,359 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $37,707,000 after purchasing an additional 142,500 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Wendy's by 22.6% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 200,375 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,931,000 after purchasing an additional 36,954 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in Wendy's in the first quarter worth approximately $1,084,000. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Wendy's in the first quarter worth approximately $326,000. Institutional investors own 85.96% of the company's stock.

Wendy's Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of Wendy's stock opened at $9.67 on Tuesday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $10.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $11.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.84 billion, a PE ratio of 10.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.37. The Wendy's Company has a 1-year low of $9.63 and a 1-year high of $20.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 28.74, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.43.

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, August 8th. The restaurant operator reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.04. Wendy's had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 103.07%. The company had revenue of $560.93 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $558.95 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.27 EPS. Wendy's's revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. Wendy's has set its FY 2025 guidance at 0.820-0.89 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Wendy's Company will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy's Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.8%. Wendy's's payout ratio is 58.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Wendy's from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 8th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Wendy's from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 18th. BTIG Research restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Wendy's in a report on Monday. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $11.00 target price (down previously from $14.00) on shares of Wendy's in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $13.00 target price on shares of Wendy's in a report on Friday, August 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $12.97.

About Wendy's

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.

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