Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Raises Holdings in The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) by 58.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 441,383 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after acquiring an additional 162,342 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC owned approximately 0.22% of Wendy's worth $6,457,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Wendy's during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Colonial Trust Co SC acquired a new position in Wendy's during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Wendy's by 1,111.9% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,133 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Wendy's during the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Wendy's during the fourth quarter worth $67,000. 85.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WEN. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Wendy's from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on Wendy's from $26.00 to $21.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Wendy's from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 5th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Wendy's from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Wendy's in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $16.34.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Lindsay J. Radkoski bought 5,050 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $11.68 per share, with a total value of $58,984.00. Following the purchase, the chief marketing officer now owns 28,956 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $338,206.08. The trade was a 21.12% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Abigail E. Pringle sold 136,819 shares of Wendy'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 transaction of $1,752,651.39. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 203,005 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,600,494.05. The trade was a 40.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 17.00% of the company's stock.

Wendy's Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WEN opened at $12.38 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 24.88. The company has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.17, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.34. The Wendy's Company has a 52 week low of $10.91 and a 52 week high of $20.60. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $11.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.02.

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.20. Wendy's had a net margin of 8.57% and a return on equity of 85.36%. The company had revenue of $523.47 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $530.11 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.23 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that The Wendy's Company will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy's Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.52%. Wendy's's payout ratio is 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.

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