Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Price Target Raised to $20.00 at Wedbush

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its price objective increased by analysts at Wedbush from $19.00 to $20.00 in a research note issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Wedbush’s price target suggests a potential downside of 0.70% from the stock’s current price. Wedbush also issued estimates for Wendy’s’ Q2 2024 earnings at $0.27 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.25 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.33 EPS and Q4 2025 earnings at $0.28 EPS.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Wendy’s from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Wendy’s from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Wendy’s from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $24.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Wendy’s from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $22.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Gordon Haskett lowered shares of Wendy’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $21.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.53.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

NASDAQ WEN opened at $20.14 on Friday. Wendy’s has a fifty-two week low of $17.64 and a fifty-two week high of $23.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.66, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a current ratio of 2.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.55, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.01.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The restaurant operator reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.02). Wendy’s had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 56.24%. The business had revenue of $540.65 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $546.47 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.22 earnings per share. Wendy’s’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Wendy’s will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kenneth W. Gilbert sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.07, for a total value of $81,315.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 31,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $565,663.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 17.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wendy’s

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Highlander Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Wendy’s by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Wendy’s by 112.0% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,444 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 763 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Wendy’s by 203.2% during the 3rd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,516 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 1,016 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Wendy’s during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in Wendy’s by 145.8% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,116 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 1,255 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

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.