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. Investors 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 5.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd.

Wendy’s has increased its dividend by an average of 51.1% per year over the last three years. Wendy’s has a dividend payout ratio of 95.2% indicating that its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings tumble. Analysts expect Wendy’s to earn $1.03 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 97.1%.

Wendy’s Stock Performance

Shares of WEN opened at $18.36 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.33, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.79. Wendy’s has a twelve month low of $15.61 and a twelve month high of $20.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.64, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a current ratio of 2.10. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $18.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.61.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25. Wendy’s had a net margin of 8.76% and a return on equity of 70.02%. The firm had revenue of $566.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $560.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.27 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Wendy’s will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WEN has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Wendy’s from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Wendy’s to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Wendy’s from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup raised their price objective on Wendy’s from $18.00 to $18.75 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Wendy’s has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.36.

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.