Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Price Target Cut to $25.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN – Get Rating) had its price target trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $26.00 to $25.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, The Fly reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Tuesday. They issued a neutral rating and a $23.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Tuesday, January 11th. They set an underperform rating for the company. Evercore ISI reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Friday, February 25th. Wedbush reaffirmed an outperform rating on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Wednesday, March 2nd. Finally, Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Wendy’s from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Wendy’s presently has a consensus rating of Buy and an average target price of $27.56.

NASDAQ:WEN opened at $20.89 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $4.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68. The company’s 50-day moving average is $21.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.30. Wendy’s has a 12-month low of $20.36 and a 12-month high of $29.46.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN – Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $473.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $459.89 million. Wendy’s had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 35.44%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.17 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Wendy’s will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 7th were given a $0.125 dividend. This is an increase from Wendy’s’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 4th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.39%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.18%.

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WEN. Ahrens Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Wendy’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 215.0% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 1,471 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 1,004 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Covestor Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $66,000. 70.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wendy’s Company Profile (Get Rating)

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

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