The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Shares Purchased by Centiva Capital LP

Centiva Capital LP raised its position in shares of The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) by 444.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 236,318 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after acquiring an additional 192,898 shares during the period. Centiva Capital LP owned approximately 0.12% of Wendy's worth $3,852,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEN. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position 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 last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in 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 in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Wendy's by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 15,634 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $255,000 after buying an additional 897 shares during the last quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings 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 valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 985 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. raised its stake in Wendy's by 9.9% during the fourth quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 11,232 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $183,000 after buying 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 Down 0.2 %

Wendy's stock opened at $12.52 on Tuesday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $13.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.79. 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 Wendy's Company has a 52 week low of $12.05 and a 52 week 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.

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last released 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $530.11 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.23 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that The Wendy's Company will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wendy's Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.47%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Wendy's's payout ratio is currently 59.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WEN. Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $16.00 price target on shares of Wendy's in a report on Friday, March 7th. Loop Capital lowered their target price on shares of Wendy's from $26.00 to $21.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Argus upgraded shares of Wendy's to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $14.00 price objective on shares of Wendy's in a research report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup increased 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Wendy's currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $16.81.

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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