Loop Capital Lowers Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Price Target to $21.00

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its price target lowered by Loop Capital from $26.00 to $21.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. Loop Capital currently has a buy rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. TD Securities decreased their target price on Wendy’s from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Wendy’s from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group cut their target price on Wendy’s from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Wendy’s to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $16.34.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

WEN stock opened at $11.77 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $13.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $15.74. Wendy’s has a 12-month low of $11.70 and a 12-month high of $20.60. The firm has a market cap of $2.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.40. 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 (NASDAQ:WEN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20. Wendy’s had a net margin of 8.65% and a return on equity of 75.56%. The company had revenue of $523.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $530.11 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.23 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Wendy’s will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.

Wendy’s Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.76%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Wendy’s news, insider Abigail E. Pringle sold 136,819 shares of Wendy’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.81, for a total value of $1,752,651.39. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 203,005 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,600,494.05. The trade was a 40.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 17.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wendy’s

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. purchased a new position in Wendy’s during the 3rd quarter valued at about $763,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 168.1% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,233 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Wendy’s by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 152,549 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,673,000 after purchasing an additional 2,087 shares in the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Wendy’s in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $357,000. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in Wendy’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $516,000. 85.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.