Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC Purchases 964,771 Shares of The Wendy’s Company $WEN

Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) by 382.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,216,811 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 964,771 shares during the period. Wendy’s accounts for approximately 0.8% of Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC owned 0.64% of Wendy’s worth $11,146,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Wendy’s by 30.1% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 13,843,438 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $158,092,000 after purchasing an additional 3,205,269 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in shares of Wendy’s by 61.3% in the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,041,012 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $57,568,000 after buying an additional 1,915,465 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,912,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Wendy’s during the second quarter valued at approximately $18,929,000. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 5.6% during the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 932,711 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $10,652,000 after acquiring an additional 49,152 shares in the last quarter. 85.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

WEN stock opened at $7.17 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.36 billion, a PE ratio of 8.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.38. The Wendy’s Company has a 12-month low of $6.73 and a 12-month high of $15.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 28.77. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $7.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.56.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 13th. The restaurant operator reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.02. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 145.93% and a net margin of 7.58%.The business had revenue of $439.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $537.11 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.25 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Wendy’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.560-0.600 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Wendy’s Company will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd will be issued a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group dropped their price target on Wendy’s from $8.50 to $7.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $8.00 price objective on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Monday, February 16th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $7.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Monday, February 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $8.50 to $8.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $9.00 to $7.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $9.00.

About Wendy’s

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.