Virtu Financial LLC Buys Shares of 28,407 The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN)

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 28,407 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $463,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEN. Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its stake in shares of Wendy's by 16.9% in the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 711,267 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $12,461,000 after buying an additional 102,769 shares during the period. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors bought a new stake in Wendy's during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,733,000. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Wendy's in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $357,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in shares of Wendy's during the fourth quarter valued at $13,358,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Wendy's by 90.8% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 109,747 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $1,923,000 after purchasing an additional 52,225 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.96% of the company's stock.

Wendy's Price Performance

NASDAQ WEN traded down $0.38 on Friday, reaching $14.63. 3,161,248 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,070,214. The stock has a market cap of $2.93 billion, a PE ratio of 15.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.73. The Wendy's Company has a 12 month low of $13.72 and a 12 month high of $20.65. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.83.

Remove Ads

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $574.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $564.17 million. Wendy's had a return on equity of 75.56% and a net margin of 8.65%. As a group, research analysts predict that The Wendy's Company will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy's Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.84%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Wendy's's dividend payout ratio is currently 105.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on WEN. Argus upgraded Wendy's to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. TD Securities reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $16.00 price objective on shares of Wendy's in a research note on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Wendy's from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Stephens restated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $15.00 target price on shares of Wendy's in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $16.00 price target on shares of Wendy's in a report on Friday, March 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $18.08.

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.