Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Price Target Cut to $21.00 by Analysts at Loop Capital

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its price target trimmed by Loop Capital from $26.00 to $21.00 in a report issued on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Argus raised shares of Wendy’s to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Barclays reduced their price objective on Wendy’s from $17.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Wendy’s from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Wendy’s has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $16.81.

Wendy’s Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WEN opened at $12.52 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.18, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.83. Wendy’s has a 12 month low of $12.05 and a 12 month high of $20.60. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $13.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $15.79.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.20. The business had revenue of $523.47 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $530.11 million. Wendy’s had a net margin of 8.65% and a return on equity of 75.56%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.23 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Wendy’s will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.47%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio is 59.57%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wendy’s

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Wendy’s by 670.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,402 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,220 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Colonial Trust Co SC acquired a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 1,111.9% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,133 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 1,957 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Wendy’s by 168.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,233 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

Wendy’s Company Profile

The Wendy’s Co engages in operating, developing, and franchising a system of quick-service restaurants. It operates through the following segments: Wendy’s U.S., Wendy’s International, and Global Real Estate and Development. The Wendy’s U.S. segment includes the operation and franchising of Wendy’s restaurants in the U.S.