Short Interest in The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Drops By 23.6%

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) saw a large decrease in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,080,000 shares, a decrease of 23.6% from the November 30th total of 13,200,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,720,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.7 days. Currently, 5.4% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

Shares of WEN opened at $16.50 on Friday. Wendy’s has a 1 year low of $15.61 and a 1 year high of $20.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.64, a current ratio of 2.10 and a quick ratio of 2.08. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $18.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.55. The firm has a market cap of $3.36 billion, a PE ratio of 17.37, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.77.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25. The business had revenue of $566.70 million for 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 quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.27 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Wendy’s will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.06%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 105.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WEN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Wendy’s from $18.00 to $18.75 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Wendy’s from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.36.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 0.6% in the third quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 92,132 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,614,000 after buying an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in Wendy’s by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 48,893 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $829,000 after purchasing an additional 711 shares in the last quarter. Probity Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Wendy’s by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Probity Advisors Inc. now owns 11,689 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $205,000 after purchasing an additional 715 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Wendy’s by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 51,523 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $874,000 after purchasing an additional 810 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Wendy’s by 21.2% in the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,432 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 949 shares during the period. 85.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wendy’s Company 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.