Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Given New $21.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) had its target price raised by Citigroup from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research report report published on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Wedbush boosted their price objective on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Friday. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday. Gordon Haskett lowered shares of Wendy’s from a buy rating to a hold rating and set a $21.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, TD Cowen restated a hold rating and issued a $19.00 price target on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Friday. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $22.60.

Wendy’s Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WEN opened at $19.17 on Friday. Wendy’s has a one year low of $17.64 and a one year high of $23.90. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $18.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.21, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 2.04. The stock has a market cap of $3.93 billion, a PE ratio of 19.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.78.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.02. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 62.68% and a net margin of 9.44%. The business had revenue of $534.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $540.84 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.21 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Wendy’s will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 3rd. Wendy’s’s payout ratio is presently 101.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Kenneth W. Gilbert sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.07, for a total transaction of $81,315.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 31,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $565,663.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 17.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Wendy’s

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Wendy’s by 22.2% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,220 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 586 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Wendy’s by 112.0% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,444 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 763 shares in the last quarter. Private Wealth Strategies L.L.C. increased its position in shares of Wendy’s by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Private Wealth Strategies L.L.C. now owns 17,867 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $348,000 after acquiring an additional 789 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in Wendy’s by 5.6% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 15,170 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 801 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Wendy’s by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,461 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares during the last quarter. 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.