Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN) Earns "Equal Weight" Rating from Stephens

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "equal weight" rating reiterated by analysts at Stephens in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $19.00 target price on the restaurant operator's stock. Stephens' price target would indicate a potential downside of 0.58% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on Wendy's from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Tigress Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $29.00 price target on shares of Wendy's in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Citigroup upped their price target on Wendy's from $18.00 to $18.75 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Loop Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Wendy's in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Wendy's from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $20.22.

Wendy's Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WEN traded down $1.20 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $19.11. 8,816,878 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,517,125. Wendy's has a 1 year low of $15.61 and a 1 year high of $20.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.01, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a current ratio of 2.17. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $17.92 and a 200 day moving average of $17.71.

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.01). Wendy's had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 67.74%. The business had revenue of $570.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $577.15 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.28 EPS. Wendy's's revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Wendy's will post 0.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Wendy's news, Director Matthew H. Peltz sold 1,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.18, for a total value of $17,180,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 14,943,466 shares in the company, valued at $256,728,745.88. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 17.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wendy's

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WEN. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted 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 worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,240 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Wendy's in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Wendy's in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Wendy's by 483.2% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,872 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,551 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wendy's in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 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.