Renaissance Technologies LLC Increases Stock Holdings in The Wendy’s Company $WEN

Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) by 2,612.4% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,340,282 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after buying an additional 2,254,000 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in Wendy’s were worth $16,265,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in Wendy’s by 8.4% during the 2nd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 16,987 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $194,000 after purchasing an additional 1,310 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in Wendy’s by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 91,885 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $765,000 after buying an additional 1,321 shares in the last quarter. Brown Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in Wendy’s by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Brown Financial Advisors now owns 29,908 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $342,000 after buying an additional 1,339 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its position in Wendy’s by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 40,993 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $375,000 after buying an additional 1,343 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Transcend Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 14,449 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $120,000 after acquiring an additional 1,350 shares in the last quarter. 85.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $6.00 price objective on Wendy’s in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $6.00 target price (down from $7.00) on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Mizuho set a $6.00 target price on Wendy’s in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Argus raised shares of Wendy’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $12.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $8.04.

Wendy’s Stock Down 3.8%

NASDAQ:WEN opened at $7.36 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.25, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a current ratio of 1.83. The company has a market capitalization of $1.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.36. The Wendy’s Company has a one year low of $6.07 and a one year high of $10.84. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $7.41 and a 200 day simple moving average of $7.44.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 8th. The restaurant operator reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.02. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 136.46% and a net margin of 6.77%.The firm had revenue of $432.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $518.03 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.20 earnings per share. Wendy’s’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Wendy’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.560-0.600 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that The Wendy’s Company will post 0.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 71.79%.

Wendy’s Profile

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) operates as a global quick-service restaurant chain, best known for its square-shaped beef patties, fresh ingredient sourcing and signature Frosty dessert. The company’s menu features a variety of hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, breakfast sandwiches, sides and beverages, designed to appeal to a broad customer base seeking both classic and contemporary fast-food options. Wendy’s has placed particular emphasis on product innovation, introducing limited-time offerings and revamped core menu items to maintain customer interest and respond to evolving dining trends.

Founded in 1969 by entrepreneur Dave Thomas in Columbus, Ohio, Wendy’s expanded rapidly through both company-owned and franchised outlets.