The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Shares Sold by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank cut its holdings in The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) by 11.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 350,600 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 43,200 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.17% of Wendy's worth $6,830,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Advisor Resource Council acquired a new position in Wendy's during the 4th quarter valued at about $372,000. Highlander Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Wendy's by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Wendy's by 193.7% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,277,958 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $26,083,000 after acquiring an additional 842,856 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. raised its holdings in Wendy's by 484.0% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 209,718 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $4,280,000 after acquiring an additional 173,805 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Wendy's by 6.1% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,248,412 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $413,270,000 after purchasing an additional 1,162,540 shares during the period. 85.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wendy's Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WEN traded up $0.18 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $18.60. 3,318,700 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,240,023. The Wendy's Company has a one year low of $17.64 and a one year high of $23.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $18.92 and a 200 day moving average of $19.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.21, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 2.04. The company has a market cap of $3.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.78.

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.02. Wendy's had a return on equity of 62.68% and a net margin of 9.44%. The company had revenue of $534.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $540.84 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.21 earnings per share. Wendy's's revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Wendy's Company will post 1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wendy's Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.38%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 3rd. Wendy's's dividend payout ratio is 101.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Wendy's news, CMO Juan Carlos Loredo sold 44,806 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.50, for a total value of $873,717.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 27,586 shares in the company, valued at $537,927. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Kenneth W. Gilbert sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.07, for a total transaction of $81,315.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 31,304 shares in the company, valued at $565,663.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Juan Carlos Loredo sold 44,806 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.50, for a total value of $873,717.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 27,586 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $537,927. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 17.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WEN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Wendy's from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $22.00 to $19.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Wendy's from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Wendy's from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Wedbush lifted their price target on Wendy's from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Wendy's from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $22.42.

Wendy's Company Profile

The Wendy's Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a quick-service restaurant company in the United States and internationally. It operates through Wendy's U.S., Wendy's International, and Global Real Estate & Development segments. The company is involved in operating, developing, and franchising a system of quick-service restaurants specializing in hamburger sandwiches.