Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN) Reaches New 12-Month Low - What's Next?

The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $12.05 and last traded at $13.12, with a volume of 7196175 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $12.42.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WEN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an "underweight" rating and set a $14.00 price target (down from $22.00) on shares of Wendy's in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $17.00 target price on shares of Wendy's in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Wedbush restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $16.00 price target on shares of Wendy's in a report on Friday, March 7th. Argus raised shares of Wendy's to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, TD Securities reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $16.00 price target on shares of Wendy's in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Wendy's has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $18.08.

Wendy's Trading Up 0.7 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 13.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.61. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $14.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a current ratio of 1.85.

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

Wendy's Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.51%. Wendy's's dividend payout ratio is 105.26%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wendy's

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WEN. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Wendy's by 670.3% during the fourth 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 valued at $30,000. Colonial Trust Co SC purchased a new position in shares of Wendy's in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings 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 worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,957 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Wendy's by 168.1% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.96% of the company's stock.

About Wendy's

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.