The Wendy's Company (WEN) AI Stock Analysis

The Wendy's Company is a quick-service restaurant company founded in 1969 and based in Dublin, Ohio. It operates through three segments: Wendy's U.S., Wendy's International, and Global Real Estate & Development. The Wendy's U.S. segment manages company-operated and franchised restaurants offering hamburgers made with fresh, never frozen beef. Wendy's International oversees franchised locations across global markets. The Global Real Estate & Development segment owns and leases restaurant properties, subleasing them to franchisees to support the franchise network.

Over the five-year period from FY2020 to FY2025, revenue grew at a CAGR of 4.7%, rising from $1.90B in FY2021 to $2.25B in FY2024 before decreasing 3.1% to $2.18B in FY2025. Operating margin declined from 19.3% in FY2021 to 15.3% in FY2025, and net income decreased from $200.4M in FY2021 to $165.1M in FY2025. For the trailing twelve months, revenue was $2.20B with an operating margin of 14.3% and a profit margin of 5.7%. For the latest quarter ended June 30, 2026, quarterly revenue grew 1.7% year-over-year, while quarterly earnings declined 40.8%.

As of June 30, 2026, Wendy's held $341.2M in cash and short-term investments compared to $4.07B in total debt, resulting in net debt of $3.73B and a debt-to-equity ratio of 33.81. Shareholders' equity was $120.5M, and the current ratio stood at 1.90. In FY2025, the company generated $344.5M in operating cash flow and $242.6M in free cash flow. Cash allocations in FY2025 included $101.9M for capital expenditures, $200.8M for share buybacks, and $129.6M for dividends paid, reducing five-year share count by 13.3%.

Wendy's trades at a trailing P/E of 10.2x and a forward P/E of 12.4x, both below the median of its US-listed Consumer Cyclical peers of 18.0x and 14.1x, respectively. Its enterprise value to EBITDA ratio is 10.3x, compared to the peer median of 11.1x, while its price-to-sales ratio is 0.6x versus the peer median of 0.7x. Over the past year, the stock fell 19.7%, trailing the S&P 500 (SPY) gain of 16.8%. Over five years, the stock dropped 61.5% while the index gained 83.0%.

Wendy's pays a quarterly dividend with an annual forward dividend of $0.28 per share, representing a dividend yield of 4.18%. The company has paid dividends for 24 consecutive years and delivered an annualized five-year dividend growth rate of 18.2%. Its dividend payout ratio stands at 70.0%, and its last ex-dividend date was September 1, 2026.

Wall Street analysts hold 3 Strong Buy, 0 Buy, 16 Hold, 2 Sell, and 3 Strong Sell ratings on the stock. The mean price target is $7.46, representing an 11.3% upside from the last close of $6.70. For the current fiscal year ending December 31, 2026, consensus estimates project revenue of $2.19B and an EPS of $0.49, reflecting a 44.0% decrease in EPS. The company beat EPS estimates in each of the last 4 quarters, with its next earnings date scheduled for November 5, 2026.

This page is an AI-written research summary of The Wendy's Company (WEN). The text was generated on October 30, 2026 from Quotelinks data as of October 16, 2026 (company profile, annual results, latest balance sheet, valuation, price performance and analyst estimates). An automatic check rejects any draft that contains a figure not found in that data. It is not investment advice; verify figures on the linked tabs before making decisions.

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