Investors Buy Large Volume of Put Options on Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN)

Posted by Stanley Muller on Jul 15th, 2026

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN – Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Stock investors bought 144,193 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 289% compared to the average volume of 37,088 put options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WEN shares. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $8.00 price objective on shares of Wendy’s in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Wendy’s in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Argus upgraded Wendy’s from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $12.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Wendy’s from $7.25 to $7.75 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Wendy’s from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $8.56.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on WEN

Wendy’s Price Performance

Shares of WEN opened at $7.42 on Wednesday. Wendy’s has a fifty-two week low of $6.07 and a fifty-two week high of $12.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $7.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $7.51. The company has a market cap of $1.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.51, a PEG ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a quick ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.25.

Wendy’s (NASDAQ:WEN – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The restaurant operator reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.02. Wendy’s had a net margin of 6.77% and a return on equity of 136.46%. The company had revenue of $432.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $518.03 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.20 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Wendy’s has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.560-0.600 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Wendy’s will post 0.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wendy’s Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. Wendy’s’s payout ratio is presently 71.79%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wendy’s

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WEN. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new stake in shares of Wendy’s during the first quarter worth approximately $161,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in Wendy’s by 1.8% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 639,085 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $9,350,000 after acquiring an additional 11,072 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Wendy’s by 35.0% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 15,687 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $179,000 after acquiring an additional 4,067 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in Wendy’s by 136.9% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 27,776 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $318,000 after acquiring an additional 16,053 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in Wendy’s by 8.4% during the 2nd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 16,987 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $194,000 after acquiring an additional 1,310 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.96% of the company’s stock.

Wendy’s Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) operates as a global quick-service restaurant chain, best known for its square-shaped beef patties, fresh ingredient sourcing and signature Frosty dessert. The company’s menu features a variety of hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, breakfast sandwiches, sides and beverages, designed to appeal to a broad customer base seeking both classic and contemporary fast-food options. Wendy’s has placed particular emphasis on product innovation, introducing limited-time offerings and revamped core menu items to maintain customer interest and respond to evolving dining trends.

Founded in 1969 by entrepreneur Dave Thomas in Columbus, Ohio, Wendy’s expanded rapidly through both company-owned and franchised outlets.