The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Shares Sold by Victory Capital Management Inc.

Key Points

• Victory Capital Management Inc. significantly reduced its holdings in The Wendy's Company by 82.7%, selling over 1.3 million shares during the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors, such as Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC and Invesco Ltd., have dramatically increased their stakes in Wendy's, reflecting a diverse shift in investor sentiment.
• Wendy's reported its latest quarterly earnings meeting estimates, but its total revenue fell short of expectations, indicating potential growth challenges ahead.

Victory Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) by 82.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 275,398 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 1,315,883 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.14% of Wendy's worth $4,029,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WEN. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Wendy's by 3,249.7% during the 4th quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 1,568,348 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $25,564,000 after buying an additional 1,521,527 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Wendy's by 296.1% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,882,829 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $30,690,000 after buying an additional 1,407,503 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new position in shares of Wendy's during the 4th quarter worth approximately $16,678,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Wendy's by 84,261.8% during the 1st 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 period. Finally, ExodusPoint Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Wendy's during the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,031,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WEN has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Wendy's from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $17.00 to $15.00 in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Barclays dropped their price target on Wendy's from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Wendy's from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. TD Securities dropped their price target on Wendy's from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Wendy's from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Wendy's has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $15.58.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wendy's

In other Wendy's news, CMO Lindsay J. Radkoski bought 5,050 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $11.68 per share, with a total value of $58,984.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief marketing officer directly owned 28,956 shares of the company's stock, valued at $338,206.08. This represents a 21.12% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Abigail E. Pringle sold 136,819 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owned 203,005 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,600,494.05. The trade was a 40.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 17.00% of the company's stock.

Wendy's Stock Performance

Shares of WEN opened at $10.76 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $13.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 24.88, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a current ratio of 1.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.07 billion, a PE ratio of 11.45, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.34. The Wendy's Company has a 1 year low of $10.30 and a 1 year high of $20.60.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.20. The business had revenue of $523.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $530.11 million. Wendy's had a return on equity of 85.36% and a net margin of 8.57%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.23 EPS. On average, analysts predict that The Wendy's Company will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wendy's Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. Wendy's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.57%.

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.

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