Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Should You Sell?

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $13.72 and last traded at $13.91, with a volume of 1230096 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $14.22.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Wendy’s from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $14.00 target price (down previously from $22.00) on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group dropped their target price on Wendy’s from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Wendy’s from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $15.00 price objective on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $18.93.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

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 has a market cap of $2.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.77. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $15.55 and its 200 day moving average is $17.11.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. Wendy’s had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 70.02%. As a group, analysts predict that The Wendy’s Company will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.99%. Wendy’s’s payout ratio is currently 105.26%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wendy’s

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Wendy’s by 670.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,402 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,220 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Wendy’s during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Wendy’s by 168.1% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,233 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares during the period. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Wendy’s during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Wendy’s during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

About Wendy’s

The Wendy’s Co engages in operating, developing, and franchising a system of quick-service restaurants. It offers hamburgers and related products, such as chicken breast sandwiches, nuggets, chili, and baked potatoes, French fries, freshly prepared salads, soft drinks, milk, coffee, frosty deserts, and kid’s meals.