Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) PT Raised to $22.00

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its price objective raised by investment analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $20.00 to $22.00 in a research note issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “market perform” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price target would suggest a potential upside of 10.33% from the stock’s previous close.

WEN has been the topic of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Wendy’s from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $22.00 to $19.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Wedbush boosted their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Wendy’s from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein cut Wendy’s from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $24.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $20.00 price target on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Thursday. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.60.

Wendy’s Price Performance

WEN opened at $19.94 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $18.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.09 billion, a PE ratio of 20.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.78. Wendy’s has a 52 week low of $17.64 and a 52 week high of $23.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.21, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a current ratio of 2.04.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $534.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $540.84 million. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 62.68% and a net margin of 9.44%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.21 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Wendy’s will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wendy’s

In other news, Director Kenneth W. Gilbert sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.07, for a total value of $81,315.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 31,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $565,663.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 17.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wendy’s

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEN. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its position in shares of Wendy’s by 378.0% in the 1st quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 1,568 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,240 shares during the period. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Wendy’s by 243.3% during the first quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC now owns 255,069 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $4,806,000 after purchasing an additional 180,772 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in Wendy’s by 5.6% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 15,170 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $286,000 after buying an additional 801 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Wendy’s by 159.2% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 59,356 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,118,000 after buying an additional 36,456 shares during the period. Finally, Prosperity Consulting Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wendy’s in the first quarter valued at approximately $379,000. 85.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Wendy’s

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.