Zacks Research Has Positive Forecast for Wendy's Q4 Earnings

The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ:WEN - Free Report) - Zacks Research raised their Q4 2024 earnings per share estimates for Wendy's in a report issued on Thursday, November 14th. Zacks Research analyst H. Ray now anticipates that the restaurant operator will earn $0.24 per share for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $0.22. The consensus estimate for Wendy's' current full-year earnings is $0.99 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Wendy's' Q1 2025 earnings at $0.22 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.25 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.25 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $1.01 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.31 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $0.27 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $1.12 EPS.

Wendy's (NASDAQ:WEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.25. The firm had revenue of $566.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $560.50 million. Wendy's had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 70.02%. The business's revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.27 earnings per share.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Citigroup upped their price target on Wendy's from $18.00 to $18.75 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Wendy's from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Wolfe Research upgraded Wendy's to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Wendy's from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Wendy's currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $20.36.

Wendy's Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WEN traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $18.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,262,951 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,528,380. The stock has a market cap of $3.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.00, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.79. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $18.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.65. Wendy's has a 12-month low of $15.61 and a 12-month high of $20.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.64.

Wendy's Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.54%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Wendy's's dividend payout ratio is currently 105.26%.

Institutional Trading of Wendy's

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WEN. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Wendy's by 42.6% during the 3rd quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 14,854 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 4,437 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Wendy's by 3.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,097,836 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $54,287,000 after buying an additional 115,875 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp purchased a new position in Wendy's during the 3rd quarter worth $208,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in Wendy's during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $949,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in Wendy's during the 3rd quarter worth $1,630,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.96% of the company's stock.

About Wendy's

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.