Stifel Nicolaus Has Lowered Expectations for Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Stock Price

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its price objective cut by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $16.00 to $14.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “hold” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price target suggests a potential upside of 5.88% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Citigroup upped their price target on Wendy’s from $15.50 to $16.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Argus raised shares of Wendy’s to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $17.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Wendy’s from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Two 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Wendy’s has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.97.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

Wendy’s stock traded up $0.00 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $13.22. The stock had a trading volume of 1,509,945 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,185,540. The company has a current ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48. Wendy’s has a 52-week low of $12.05 and a 52-week high of $20.65. The company has a market capitalization of $2.59 billion, a PE ratio of 13.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $14.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.39.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $574.27 million during 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Wendy’s will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wendy’s

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Wendy’s by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 25,529 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $416,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its position in shares of Wendy’s by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 57,400 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $979,000 after buying an additional 797 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 15,634 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $255,000 after buying an additional 897 shares during the period. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 46.4% in the fourth quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,107 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 985 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. lifted its stake in Wendy’s by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 11,232 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $183,000 after acquiring an additional 1,008 shares during the period. 85.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.