The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Brokerages

The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Hold" by the twenty-one brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have issued a hold recommendation, five have given a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $16.34.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WEN shares. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $17.00 price objective on shares of Wendy's in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Wedbush restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $16.00 price objective on shares of Wendy's in a research note on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Wendy's from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Wendy's from $15.50 to $16.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Wendy's in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th.

Wendy's Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of WEN stock opened at $12.38 on Wednesday. Wendy's has a 12 month low of $10.91 and a 12 month high of $20.60. 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 business's 50 day moving average is $11.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.02. The company has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a PE ratio of 13.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.34.

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

Wendy's Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.52%. Wendy's's dividend payout ratio is presently 59.57%.

Insider Activity at Wendy's

In other Wendy's news, CMO Lindsay J. Radkoski purchased 5,050 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $11.68 per share, with a total value of $58,984.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 28,956 shares of the company's stock, valued at $338,206.08. This represents a 21.12% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Abigail E. Pringle sold 136,819 shares of Wendy's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 203,005 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,600,494.05. This represents a 40.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 17.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WEN. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Wendy's in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Colonial Trust Co SC acquired a new stake in Wendy's in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in Wendy's by 1,111.9% in 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 during the period. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Wendy's in the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in Wendy's by 7,180.9% in the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 3,422 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 3,375 shares during the period. 85.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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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