The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) Plans $0.25 Quarterly Dividend

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, October 31st, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of 0.25 per share by the restaurant operator on Monday, December 16th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd.

Wendy’s has increased its dividend by an average of 51.1% annually over the last three years. Wendy’s has a payout ratio of 94.3% indicating that its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings tumble. Research analysts expect Wendy’s to earn $1.04 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 96.2%.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

Shares of WEN opened at $19.11 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.80. The company’s fifty day moving average is $17.92 and its 200-day moving average is $17.71. The company has a quick ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.01. Wendy’s has a 12 month low of $15.61 and a 12 month high of $20.65.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.01). Wendy’s had a return on equity of 67.74% and a net margin of 9.18%. The business had revenue of $570.73 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $577.15 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.28 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Wendy’s will post 0.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WEN has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $26.00 price target on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Monday, July 15th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Wendy’s from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Wendy’s from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Wendy’s has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.22.

Insider Transactions at Wendy’s

In related news, Director Matthew H. Peltz sold 1,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.18, for a total value of $17,180,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,943,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $256,728,745.88. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 17.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.