Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Trading Down 5.7% – Time to Sell?

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) was down 5.7% on Monday . The company traded as low as $8.07 and last traded at $8.11. Approximately 3,136,996 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 12,914,210 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.60.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on WEN shares. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $8.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Citigroup upped their price target on Wendy’s from $7.25 to $7.75 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Argus raised shares of Wendy’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $12.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Monday, April 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Wendy’s has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $8.56.

Wendy’s Trading Down 1.5%

The firm has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.97, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.36. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.25.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The restaurant operator reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.02. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 136.46% and a net margin of 6.77%.The firm had revenue of $432.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $518.03 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.20 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Wendy’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.560-0.600 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Wendy’s Company will post 0.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.2%. Wendy’s’s payout ratio is 71.79%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Wendy’s by 30.1% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 13,843,438 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $158,092,000 after acquiring an additional 3,205,269 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,091,847 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $59,075,000 after purchasing an additional 227,023 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,549,066 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $54,554,000 after purchasing an additional 357,814 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,446,335 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $45,368,000 after purchasing an additional 102,084 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,493,752 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $31,232,000 after purchasing an additional 236,541 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

Wendy’s Company Profile

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) operates as a global quick-service restaurant chain, best known for its square-shaped beef patties, fresh ingredient sourcing and signature Frosty dessert. The company’s menu features a variety of hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, breakfast sandwiches, sides and beverages, designed to appeal to a broad customer base seeking both classic and contemporary fast-food options. Wendy’s has placed particular emphasis on product innovation, introducing limited-time offerings and revamped core menu items to maintain customer interest and respond to evolving dining trends.

Founded in 1969 by entrepreneur Dave Thomas in Columbus, Ohio, Wendy’s expanded rapidly through both company-owned and franchised outlets.