Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Acquires 2,087 Shares of The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 152,549 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,087 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC owned 0.07% of Wendy’s worth $2,673,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEN. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Wendy’s during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in Wendy’s during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Wendy’s by 168.1% in the 4th 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. AM Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Wendy’s in the third quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in shares of Wendy’s by 39.6% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,690 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 1,046 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

Wendy’s Price Performance

NASDAQ:WEN opened at $15.13 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $17.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $17.49. The Wendy’s Company has a 12 month low of $14.73 and a 12 month high of $20.65. The firm has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.64.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.25. The firm had revenue of $566.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $560.50 million. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 70.02% and a net margin of 8.76%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.27 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 105.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Wendy’s from $18.00 to $17.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $18.00 to $18.75 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $20.00 price objective on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.04.

Wendy’s Profile

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.