The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Receives $9.00 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-five research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, fifteen have assigned a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $9.00.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $11.00 to $9.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $7.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Monday, February 16th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Wendy’s from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Argus raised Wendy’s to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

WEN opened at $6.93 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $7.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $8.00. The company has a market capitalization of $1.32 billion, a PE ratio of 8.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.40. Wendy’s has a 1 year low of $6.63 and a 1 year high of $13.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 28.77, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.74.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 13th. The restaurant operator reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $439.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $537.11 million. Wendy’s had a net margin of 7.58% and a return on equity of 145.93%. Wendy’s’s quarterly revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.25 earnings per share. Wendy’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.560-0.600 EPS. Research analysts expect that Wendy’s will post 0.58 EPS for the current year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.1%. Wendy’s’s payout ratio is currently 65.88%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Alps Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 71.7% in the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 634,304 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $5,810,000 after purchasing an additional 264,905 shares in the last quarter. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 382.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC now owns 1,216,811 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $11,146,000 after purchasing an additional 964,771 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Wendy’s in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $5,651,000. Ruffer LLP bought a new position in Wendy’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,194,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Wendy’s by 107.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 759,620 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $6,958,000 after purchasing an additional 393,105 shares during the last quarter. 85.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Wendy’s

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.