Raymond James & Associates Sells 2,989 Shares of The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN)

Raymond James & Associates reduced its holdings in shares of The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 81,537 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 2,989 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Wendy’s were worth $1,588,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of WEN. Legato Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Wendy’s by 21.6% during the fourth quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 88,506 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,724,000 after acquiring an additional 15,741 shares in the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Wendy’s by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,461 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Wendy’s by 213.6% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 16,531 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $322,000 after purchasing an additional 11,260 shares during the last quarter. Advisor Resource Council acquired a new stake in Wendy’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $372,000. Finally, Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning acquired a new stake in Wendy’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $260,000. 85.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wendy’s Price Performance

Shares of WEN opened at $19.00 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.90 billion, a PE ratio of 19.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.82. The Wendy’s Company has a 52-week low of $17.64 and a 52-week high of $23.90. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $18.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.66, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a current ratio of 2.19.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The restaurant operator reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $540.65 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $546.47 million. Wendy’s had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 56.24%. The firm’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.22 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Wendy’s Company will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.

Wendy’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.26%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio is presently 102.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Wendy’s from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $22.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Wendy’s from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $24.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Barclays cut Wendy’s from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $23.00 to $21.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Wedbush dropped their price objective on shares of Wendy’s from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Wendy’s has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $22.47.

Insider Activity at Wendy’s

In other news, Director Kenneth W. Gilbert sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.07, for a total transaction of $81,315.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 31,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $565,663.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 17.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.