Stifel Nicolaus Cuts Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Price Target to $17.00

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its price target reduced by Stifel Nicolaus from $18.00 to $17.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Wendy’s from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Wendy’s from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Wendy’s to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Wendy’s from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Wendy’s has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.04.

Wendy’s Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of WEN stock opened at $14.94 on Friday. Wendy’s has a 1-year low of $14.89 and a 1-year high of $20.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.05 billion, a PE ratio of 15.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.64, a current ratio of 2.10 and a quick ratio of 2.08. The business has a 50-day moving average of $17.48 and a 200 day moving average of $17.50.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25. The company had revenue of $566.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $560.50 million. Wendy’s had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 70.02%. Wendy’s’s revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Wendy’s will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 105.26%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wendy’s

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WEN. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Wendy’s in the second quarter worth $27,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Wendy’s in the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Wendy’s by 168.1% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,233 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Wendy’s during the 3rd quarter valued at about $49,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Wendy’s by 39.6% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,690 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 1,046 shares during the last quarter. 85.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.