Boston, MA 05/30/2014 (wallstreetpr) – The Wendy’s Co (NASDAQ:WEN) had a good run last year where its shares surged nearly 86 percent. However, things have not been good for the quick-service restaurant operator in 2014.
Investor concern has been heightened in the company in recent months because the stock is losing ground at a time when its competitors are surging. Amid such concerns, the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission filings reveal than a major institutional investor unloaded a significant chunk of its holding in Wendy’s.
Trian Fund Management sold about 22 percent stake in Wendy’s in the 1Q2014. At least 18 million shares were sold in the transaction. However, the investor still owned about 64.8 million shares in The Wendy’s Co (NASDAQ:WEN) at the end of March this year, translating to 17.7percent stake in the company.
At least three founders of Trian serve in the board of Wendy’s. The Trian’s co-founder Nelson Peltz is the chairman of the board at Wendy’s while fellow founders Peter May and Ed Garden are also on the board of the restaurant operator.
Trian in PepsiCo
In addition to investment in Wendy’s, Trian also owns a stake in the snacks and beverage operator PepsiCo, Inc (NYSE:PEP). The Trian owns about 12.4 million shares of PepsiCo, suggesting about 0.8 percent stake in the beverage company. The activist investor recently tried to bring a dose of its influence to PepsiCo by urging the company to separate its snacks and beverage businesses into standalone companies. However, PepsiCo rejected the call claiming it was better off undertaking the combined operations of snacks and beverage a single company.
Booking profits and possible impact
The move by Trian to reduce its stake in Wendy’s Co (NASDAQ:WEN) is not a surprise move. After the stock soared last year it was only natural that investors would move to book profits and Trian may have just done so. However, given the amount of shares unloaded in the latest transaction, eyebrows would be raised if Trian were to sell further. In any case, such big transactions have not happened in Wendy’s over the past four or five years.
