Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN) Earns "Equal Weight" Rating from Stephens

Stephens reissued their equal weight rating on shares of Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) in a report issued on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Stephens currently has a $14.00 price target on the restaurant operator's stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on WEN. Argus raised shares of Wendy's to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $16.00 price objective on shares of Wendy's in a research note on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and set a $17.00 target price (down from $20.00) on shares of Wendy's in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Wendy's from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $14.00 price target (down from $22.00) on shares of Wendy's in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $16.81.

Wendy's Price Performance

WEN stock traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $12.52. 8,838,752 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,261,999. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a current ratio of 1.85. The stock has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.18, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.40. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $13.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.79. Wendy's has a fifty-two week low of $12.05 and a fifty-two week high of $20.60.

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $523.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $530.11 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.23 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Wendy's 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 is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.47%. Wendy's's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Wendy's by 670.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,402 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,220 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Wendy's in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Colonial Trust Co SC purchased a new stake in shares of Wendy's during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Wendy's by 1,111.9% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,133 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 1,957 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Wendy's by 168.1% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,233 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. 85.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.