Wendy’s Shares Sizzle as Growth Outlook Rises

Investors looking for growth stocks for 2001 are increasingly souring on technology. Some who are looking for better ideas are turning to . . . hamburger chains.

Among the hottest stocks of recent weeks have been such burger giants as Jack in the Box (ticker: JBX), Sonic Corp. (SONC) and Wendy’s International (WEN).

Wendy’s got a further boost Tuesday when it said it raised its estimate for growth in fourth-quarter operating earnings per share to a range of 17% to 19%, up from earlier projections of 14% to 17%.

The stock rose 81 cents to $26.13 on the New York Stock Exchange.

Wendy’s said it was seeing “good sales at Wendy’s in North America and exceptionally good sales” at its Tim Hortons coffee-and-doughnuts chain.

At the same time, the chain said it is pulling out of Argentina because all 18 of its burger restaurants in the South American country are underperforming.

Analysts expect Wendy’s to earn $1.49 a share this year and $1.69 in 2001, according to Zacks Investment Research.

Ticker Talk: The NYSE said third-quarter earnings rose 47% despite a choppy market. The largest U.S. market said net income rose to $25.9 million from $17.6 million in the year-ago quarter. A return to blue-chip stocks in summer, as many Nasdaq tech issues sank, helped boost average daily NYSE trading volume 29% in the quarter from a year earlier. Trading fees make up almost half of NYSE revenue, which totaled $212 million in the quarter.

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Burger Boom

Wendy’s International shares have been on a hot streak in recent weeks, though they remain below their peak reached in 1999.

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Monthly closes and latest for Wendy’s International (ticker: WEN) on Nasdaq

Tuesday: $26.13, up 81 cents

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Source: Bloomberg New