Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co Buys Shares of 13,305 The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN)

Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co bought a new position in The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 13,305 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $217,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Wendy’s by 670.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,402 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,220 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Wendy’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Wendy’s by 168.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,233 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Wendy’s during the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Wendy’s by 46.4% in the 4th quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,107 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 985 shares during the period. 85.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WEN opened at $14.63 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.48, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.83. The Wendy’s Company has a one year low of $13.72 and a one year high of $20.65. The company has a market cap of $2.93 billion, a PE ratio of 15.40, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.73. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $14.97 and a 200-day moving average of $16.74.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 75.56% and a net margin of 8.65%. The firm had revenue of $574.27 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $564.17 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Wendy’s Company will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 105.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WEN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $16.00 price target on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $17.00 target price (down previously from $20.00) on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $15.50 to $16.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Wendy’s to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $18.08.

Wendy’s Profile

The Wendy’s Co engages in operating, developing, and franchising a system of quick-service restaurants. It operates through the following segments: Wendy’s U.S., Wendy’s International, and Global Real Estate and Development. The Wendy’s U.S. segment includes the operation and franchising of Wendy’s restaurants in the U.S.