Wedbush Raises Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Price Target to $20.00

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its price target increased by Wedbush from $19.00 to $20.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Wedbush also issued estimates for Wendy’s’ Q2 2024 earnings at $0.27 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.25 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.33 EPS and Q4 2025 earnings at $0.28 EPS.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on WEN. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Wendy’s from an outperform rating to a market perform rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $24.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Wendy’s from a buy rating to a hold rating and set a $21.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price target on Wendy’s from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $22.53.

Wendy’s Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of WEN stock opened at $20.14 on Friday. Wendy’s has a 1 year low of $17.64 and a 1 year high of $23.90. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $18.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $19.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.66, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 2.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.55, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.82.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The restaurant operator reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.02). Wendy’s had a return on equity of 56.24% and a net margin of 9.37%. The company had revenue of $540.65 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $546.47 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.22 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Wendy’s will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 102.04%.

Insider Transactions at Wendy’s

In related news, Director Kenneth W. Gilbert sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.07, for a total transaction of $81,315.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 31,304 shares in the company, valued at $565,663.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 17.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Highlander Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Wendy’s by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 112.0% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,444 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 763 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Wendy’s by 203.2% in the 3rd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,516 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,016 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Wendy’s during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Wendy’s in the third quarter worth $42,000. 85.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wendy’s Company Profile

The Wendy's Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a quick-service restaurant company in the United States and internationally. It operates through Wendy's U.S., Wendy's International, and Global Real Estate & Development segments. The company is involved in operating, developing, and franchising a system of quick-service restaurants specializing in hamburger sandwiches.