The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Holdings Increased by Point72 Hong Kong Ltd

Point72 Hong Kong Ltd boosted its position in The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) by 4,354.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 31,180 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after buying an additional 30,480 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd's holdings in Wendy's were worth $508,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in WEN. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Wendy's by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 25,529 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $416,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in shares of Wendy's by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 57,400 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $979,000 after purchasing an additional 797 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in Wendy's by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 15,634 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $255,000 after acquiring an additional 897 shares in the last quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Wendy's by 46.4% in the fourth quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,107 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 985 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. grew its position in Wendy's by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 11,232 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $183,000 after acquiring an additional 1,008 shares in the last quarter. 85.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wendy's Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WEN traded down $0.09 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $12.25. The company had a trading volume of 3,091,139 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,279,063. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $13.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.26. The Wendy's Company has a 1 year low of $11.70 and a 1 year high of $20.60. 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 capitalization of $2.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.40.

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.20 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $530.11 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.23 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast 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 will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Wendy's's dividend payout ratio is presently 59.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on WEN shares. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Wendy's from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 5th. TD Securities reduced their price target on shares of Wendy's from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Wendy's from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $17.00 to $15.00 in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Wendy's from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $16.34.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Abigail E. Pringle sold 136,819 shares of Wendy's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.81, for a total value of $1,752,651.39. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 203,005 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,600,494.05. This trade represents a 40.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 17.00% of the company's stock.

About Wendy's

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.