Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity
Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities.
The Company’s common stock is traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market (“Nasdaq”) under the symbol “WEN.”
The Company’s common stock is entitled to one vote per share on all matters on which stockholders are entitled to vote. The Company has no class of equity securities currently issued and outstanding except for its common stock. However, the Company is currently authorized to issue up to 100 million shares of preferred stock.
The Company paid quarterly cash dividends of $.125 per share of common stock during each of the first, second, third and fourth quarters of 2022. The Company paid quarterly cash dividends of $.25 per share of common stock during each of the first, second, third and fourth quarters of 2023.
During the first quarter of 2024, the Company declared a dividend of $.25 per share of common stock to be paid on March 15, 2024 to stockholders of record as of March 1, 2024. Although the Company currently intends to continue to declare and pay quarterly cash dividends, there can be no assurance that any additional quarterly cash dividends will be declared or paid or as to the amount or timing of such dividends, if any. Future dividend payments, if any, will be made at the discretion of our Board of Directors and will be based on such factors as the Company’s earnings, financial condition and cash requirements and other factors.
As of February 16, 2024, there were approximately 19,058 holders of record of the Company’s common stock.
The following table provides information with respect to repurchases of shares of our common stock by us and our “affiliated purchasers” (as defined in Rule 10b-18(a)(3) under the Exchange Act) during the fourth fiscal quarter of 2023:
Issuer Repurchases of Equity Securities
Period Total Number of Shares Purchased (1) Average Price Paid per Share Total Number of Shares Purchased as Part of Publicly Announced Plan Approximate Dollar Value of Shares that May Yet Be Purchased Under the Plan (2)
October 2, 2023
through
November 5, 2023 1,492,828 $ 19.17 1,492,828 $ 327,084,386
November 6, 2023
through
December 3, 2023 464,741 $ 18.98 464,210 $ 318,282,255
December 4, 2023
through
December 31, 2023 422,351 $ 19.71 420,454 $ 310,000,010
Total 2,379,920 $ 19.23 2,377,492 $ 310,000,010
(1) Includes 2,428 shares of common stock reacquired by the Company from holders of share-based awards to satisfy certain requirements associated with the vesting or exercise of the respective award. The shares were valued at the fair market value of the Company’s common stock on the vesting or exercise date of such awards, as set forth in the applicable plan document.
(2) In January 2023, our Board of Directors authorized a repurchase program for up to $500.0 million of our common stock through February 28, 2027, when and if market conditions warrant and to the extent legally permissible (the “January 2023 Authorization”).
Item 6. [Reserved]
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