Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Lowered to “Market Perform” at BMO Capital Markets

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN – Get Rating) was downgraded by stock analysts at BMO Capital Markets from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report issued on Monday, The Fly reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Wendy’s in a report on Thursday, March 31st. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Wednesday, March 2nd. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Tuesday, April 12th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $23.00 price target for the company. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 23rd. Finally, Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $27.56.

Wendy’s stock opened at $20.89 on Monday. Wendy’s has a 52 week low of $20.36 and a 52 week high of $29.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.47, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.93. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.30.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.01. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 35.44% and a net margin of 10.56%. The company had revenue of $473.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $459.89 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.17 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Wendy’s will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WEN. Ahrens Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 215.0% during the third quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 1,471 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 1,004 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Covestor Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the fourth quarter worth $66,000. Institutional investors own 70.20% of the company’s stock.

About Wendy’s (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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