Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Stock Price Down 4.7% – Here’s What Happened

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) traded down 4.7% on Wednesday. The stock traded as low as $6.25 and last traded at $6.2150. Approximately 550,063 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 95% from the average daily volume of 11,006,044 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.52.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WEN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley set a $5.50 target price on Wendy’s in a report on Monday, August 10th. Stephens lowered their target price on Wendy’s from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Monday, August 10th. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Wendy’s from $8.00 to $8.25 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Wendy’s currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $7.61.

Wendy’s Trading Up 4.6%

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $7.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $7.34. The company has a market cap of $1.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 27.95, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 1.90.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The restaurant operator reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.02. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 115.31% and a net margin of 5.72%. The firm had revenue of $570.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $557.13 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.29 EPS. Wendy’s’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Wendy’s Company will post 0.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy’s Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st were paid a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. This is a decrease from Wendy’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 1st. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio is 42.42%.

Institutional Trading of Wendy’s

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WEN. Trian Fund Management L.P. bought a new stake in Wendy’s in the second quarter worth $252,583,000. BlackRock Inc. lifted its position in Wendy’s by 21.1% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 26,314,724 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $218,149,000 after purchasing an additional 4,576,075 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new position in Wendy’s during the first quarter valued at $26,062,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 2,612.4% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,340,282 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $16,265,000 after buying an additional 2,254,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Wendy’s in the 2nd quarter worth $13,820,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

Wendy’s Company Profile

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ: WEN) operates and franchises quick-service restaurants under the Wendy’s brand. Its restaurants are known for hamburgers made with fresh, never-frozen beef, along with chicken sandwiches, salads, fries, breakfast items, desserts, and beverages.

Founded by Dave Thomas in 1969, Wendy’s has grown into an international restaurant chain with locations primarily in the United States and Canada, as well as select markets in other countries. The company’s restaurant system includes both company-operated and franchised locations.

In addition to its restaurant operations, Wendy’s supports customers through digital ordering, delivery, loyalty programs, and mobile applications.