12 Best Fast Food Stocks to Buy Now

9. The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 33   

Revenue growth (YOY): 2.98%

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) boasts a value offer centered around fresh and craveable products at competitive pricing points, making it the second-largest quick-service restaurant burger company in the United States, after McDonald’s. Following the 2006 and 2011 divestitures of Tim Hortons and Arby’s, the company now only operates the burger brand, generating sales from more than 7,200 locations in 30 countries as of the end of 2024. It is among the Best Food Stocks.

Over the past few years, The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) has had an upsurge because of its breakfast platform’s renewed launch, store redesign, and great value positioning. Since 2019, mid-single-digit annual US revenue growth has been supported by steady same-store sales growth and solid cash-on-cash returns. The company is focusing on its breakfast business, unit development, and international expansion to fuel its next phase of growth. Morningstar analysts still believe that the company’s efforts to expand internationally are unlikely to produce tangible results, but they also point out that significant development agreements in Asia-Pacific suggest that The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN)’s brand might be strong enough to make a modest entry into developing foreign markets. Analysts continue to believe that success is unlikely in regions where Burger King and McDonald’s already hold a dominant market share.

In fiscal Q4 2024, The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ:WEN) announced a new target dividend payout ratio of 50% to 60% of adjusted profits as part of an overhaul to its capital allocation policy. The company can increase growth and long-term shareholder value due to its new capital allocation policy. The business’s operations are resilient. The company’s global same-restaurant sales grew for the fourteenth consecutive year in fiscal year 2024. Systemwide sales for the business jumped 5.4% to $3.7 billion in fiscal Q4 2024. Adjusted revenues for the quarter were $459.3 million, a 6.4% rise from total revenues of $574.3 million. Additionally, its adjusted EBITDA surged by 8.6% to $137.5 million.