Key Points
Wendy's new CEO and CFO are turnaround experts.
The 56-year-old restaurant company could be the latest meme stock craze.
- 10 stocks we like better than Wendy's ›
Shares of Wendy's (NASDAQ: WEN) surged on Wednesday on heavy volume as investors rallied behind the beleaguered burger chain.
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Is this just another meme stock mania?
Users of the popular stock-trading Reddit community WallStreetBets have taken an interest in Wendy's. One particularly viral thread labeled "We need to save Wendy's" garnered over 20,000 upvotes.
The struggling fast-food joint could use all the help it can get. Even after today's gains, Wendy's stock has lost roughly two-thirds of its value over the past five years.
Wendy's operating profit fell 21.9% to $64.9 million in the first quarter, driven by a 6.8% decline in same-store sales. The restaurant chain is facing a challenging combination of declining traffic and rising commodity and labor costs.
Could this be the beginning of a turnaround?
To help right the ship, Wendy's brought on new leadership. New CEO Robert Wright took the helm on May 21. Wright previously served as the CEO of Potbelly Corporation.
Wendy's also named former Potbelly executive Steve Cirulis as its chief financial officer and chief strategy officer on Tuesday. Wendy's noted that Wright and Cirulis helped spearhead a successful turnaround at Potbelly that saw its share price rise by over 500% during their tenure.
Should you buy stock in Wendy's right now?
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Joe Tenebruso has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Reddit. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
