Wendy’s Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:WEN)

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Stock investors bought 20,108 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 105% compared to the typical daily volume of 9,818 put options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on WEN shares. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Wendy’s from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Wendy’s from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Wendy’s from $11.00 to $9.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price target on Wendy’s from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Wendy’s currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.34.

Wendy’s Trading Down 1.9%

NASDAQ:WEN opened at $8.34 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 26.89. Wendy’s has a 1-year low of $7.83 and a 1-year high of $16.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.87, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.39. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $8.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $9.40.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The restaurant operator reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by $0.04. Wendy’s had a return on equity of 125.74% and a net margin of 8.43%.The company had revenue of $442.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $535.75 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.25 EPS. Wendy’s’s revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Wendy’s has set its FY 2025 guidance at 0.820-0.890 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Wendy’s will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.7%. Wendy’s’s payout ratio is 59.57%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wendy’s

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Atlas Brown Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Wendy’s during the fourth quarter worth about $86,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Wendy’s by 77.5% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 126,035 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,050,000 after buying an additional 55,028 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Wendy’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $781,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Wendy’s by 26.7% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 210,519 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,777,000 after acquiring an additional 44,327 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Wendy’s by 1,773.4% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 10,547 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $88,000 after acquiring an additional 9,984 shares in the last quarter. 85.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wendy’s Company Profile

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.