Cullen Investment Group LTD. Makes New $874,000 Investment in The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN)

Cullen Investment Group LTD. purchased a new stake in The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 44,842 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $874,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Wendy’s in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Wendy’s in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Highlander Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Wendy’s by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Wendy’s by 217.4% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,403 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 961 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Wendy’s by 112.0% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,444 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 763 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

Wendy’s Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WEN opened at $18.76 on Tuesday. The Wendy’s Company has a 52-week low of $17.64 and a 52-week high of $23.90. The company has a market capitalization of $3.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.01. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The restaurant operator reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.02). Wendy’s had a net margin of 9.37% and a return on equity of 56.24%. The firm had revenue of $540.65 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $546.47 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.22 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Wendy’s Company will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors 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 yield of 5.33%. Wendy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 102.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on WEN shares. Gordon Haskett cut shares of Wendy’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $21.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Friday. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $20.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Wendy’s from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of Wendy’s in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Wendy’s from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $22.00 to $19.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.47.

Insider Activity at Wendy’s

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