Barclays Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Stock

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its price objective lifted by Barclays from $16.00 to $17.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $17.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Argus raised shares of Wendy’s to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $14.00 price target (down previously from $22.00) on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Wendy’s from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on Wendy’s from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Wendy’s has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $18.08.

Wendy’s Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WEN opened at $15.53 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $15.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.93. Wendy’s has a fifty-two week low of $13.72 and a fifty-two week high of $20.65. The firm has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a PE ratio of 16.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $574.27 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $564.17 million. Wendy’s had a net margin of 8.65% and a return on equity of 75.56%. Sell-side analysts expect that Wendy’s will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.44%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 105.26%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wendy’s

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WEN. Probity Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Wendy’s by 21.9% in the 4th quarter. Probity Advisors Inc. now owns 14,253 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $232,000 after buying an additional 2,564 shares during the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Wendy’s during the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,723,000. Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Wendy’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $171,000. PharVision Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the fourth quarter worth approximately $530,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Wendy’s by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 628,013 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $10,237,000 after purchasing an additional 72,033 shares during the last quarter. 85.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wendy’s Company Profile

The Wendy’s Co engages in operating, developing, and franchising a system of quick-service restaurants. It offers hamburgers and related products, such as chicken breast sandwiches, nuggets, chili, and baked potatoes, French fries, freshly prepared salads, soft drinks, milk, coffee, frosty deserts, and kid’s meals.