The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Short Interest Down 22.9% in June

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,230,000 shares, a decrease of 22.9% from the May 31st total of 13,270,000 shares. Approximately 5.5% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 3,730,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.7 days.

Wendy’s Trading Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ:WEN opened at $16.96 on Friday. Wendy’s has a 1 year low of $16.22 and a 1 year high of $22.42. The stock has a market cap of $3.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.13, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.77. The business has a fifty day moving average of $17.98 and a 200-day moving average of $18.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.21, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a current ratio of 2.04.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $534.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $540.84 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.21 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Wendy’s will post 1 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.90%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 101.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WEN has been the topic of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $19.00 price target on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. Wedbush upped their price target on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Wendy’s in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. They set a “sell” rating and a $16.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $20.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CMO Juan Carlos Loredo sold 44,806 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.50, for a total transaction of $873,717.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 27,586 shares in the company, valued at approximately $537,927. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 17.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WEN. Highlander Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Wendy’s by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its stake in Wendy’s by 378.0% during the first quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 1,568 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 1,240 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in Wendy’s during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Wendy’s by 483.2% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,872 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,551 shares during the period. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Wendy’s by 145.8% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,116 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,255 shares during the period. 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.