Nomura Holdings Inc. Acquires Shares of 22,720 The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN)

Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 22,720 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $370,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WEN. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Wendy's by 670.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,402 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,220 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Wendy's during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Colonial Trust Co SC bought a new position in shares of Wendy's during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Wendy's during the 4th quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Wendy's by 46.4% during the 4th quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,107 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 985 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.96% of the company's stock.

Wendy's Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WEN opened at $11.50 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $13.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.16. The Wendy's Company has a twelve month low of $11.39 and a twelve month high of $20.60. The stock has a market cap of $2.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.11, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48.

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.20. The company had revenue of $523.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $530.11 million. Wendy's had a return on equity of 75.56% and a net margin of 8.65%. Wendy's's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.23 EPS. As a group, 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.87%. Wendy's's dividend payout ratio is 59.57%.

Insider Activity 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 transaction of $1,752,651.39. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 203,005 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,600,494.05. This trade represents a 40.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 17.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WEN has been the subject of several research reports. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $14.00 price target on shares of Wendy's in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Argus upgraded Wendy's to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Wendy's from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Wendy's from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Wendy's from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $16.34.

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.

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