Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Cuts Position in The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) by 78.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,107 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 47,973 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Wendy’s were worth $247,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Wendy’s by 22.2% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,220 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Private Wealth Strategies L.L.C. grew its holdings in Wendy’s by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Private Wealth Strategies L.L.C. now owns 17,867 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $348,000 after purchasing an additional 789 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Wendy’s by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,461 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares during the last quarter. Paradigm Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in Wendy’s by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Paradigm Financial Partners LLC now owns 24,355 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $474,000 after purchasing an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 58.0% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,352 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 863 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Wendy’s

In other news, CMO Juan Carlos Loredo sold 44,806 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.50, for a total value of $873,717.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 27,586 shares in the company, valued at approximately $537,927. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 17.10% of the company’s stock.

Wendy’s Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WEN opened at $16.94 on Friday. The Wendy’s Company has a fifty-two week low of $16.22 and a fifty-two week high of $22.42. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $18.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.62. The company has a quick ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.21. The firm has a market cap of $3.47 billion, a PE ratio of 17.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.77.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.02. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 62.68% and a net margin of 9.44%. The firm had revenue of $534.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $540.84 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.21 EPS. Wendy’s’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that The Wendy’s Company will post 1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.90%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $19.00 price objective on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Citigroup increased their target price on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Wedbush increased their target price on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Wendy’s from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.79.

About Wendy’s

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.