The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Shares Sold by Two Sigma Advisers LP

Two Sigma Advisers LP cut its stake in shares of The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) by 59.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 424,605 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 620,000 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned about 0.21% of Wendy's worth $6,921,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Wendy's by 52.0% in the fourth quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 15,403 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $251,000 after acquiring an additional 5,270 shares in the last quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Wendy's in the 4th quarter valued at about $860,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd raised its holdings in Wendy's by 4,354.3% in the 4th quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 31,180 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $508,000 after acquiring an additional 30,480 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Wendy's by 170.8% in the 4th quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 297,187 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $4,844,000 after purchasing an additional 187,440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc acquired a new position in shares of Wendy's during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,644,000. 85.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wendy's Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of WEN stock traded down $0.23 on Tuesday, hitting $11.21. The stock had a trading volume of 7,143,200 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,307,055. The company's 50 day moving average price is $12.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.97. The Wendy's Company has a 1 year low of $11.17 and a 1 year high of $20.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.40.

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.20. The company had revenue of $523.47 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $530.11 million. Wendy's had a net margin of 8.65% and a return on equity of 75.56%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.23 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that The Wendy's Company will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy's Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.00%. Wendy's's dividend payout ratio is presently 59.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Abigail E. Pringle sold 136,819 shares of the business'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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 203,005 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,600,494.05. The trade was a 40.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 17.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WEN. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Wendy's from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Wedbush restated a "neutral" rating and set a $16.00 price objective on shares of Wendy's in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Wendy's from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Wendy's from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $17.00 to $15.00 in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Wendy's from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Wendy's presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $16.34.

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.