Versant Capital Management Inc Acquires 22,101 Shares of The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN)

Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) by 1,294.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 23,809 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after acquiring an additional 22,101 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc's holdings in Wendy's were worth $348,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Wendy's by 670.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,402 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 1,220 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Wendy's in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Colonial Trust Co SC purchased a new position in shares of Wendy's in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Wendy's in the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Wendy's in the fourth quarter worth about $67,000. 85.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on WEN. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $17.00 price objective on shares of Wendy's in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Wendy's from $15.50 to $16.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased 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. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased 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. Finally, TD Securities decreased their price objective on Wendy's from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $16.34.

Insider Transactions at Wendy's

In related news, insider Abigail E. Pringle sold 136,819 shares of the company'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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 203,005 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,600,494.05. This represents a 40.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 17.00% of the company's stock.

Wendy's Stock Up 1.6%

Wendy's stock traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $11.58. 6,487,673 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,298,675. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $12.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48. The company has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a PE ratio of 12.19, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.40. The Wendy's Company has a one year low of $10.98 and a one year high of $20.60.

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

Wendy's Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.84%. Wendy's's dividend payout ratio is currently 59.57%.

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.