Wendy's Q1 net income falls 42% as systemwide sales drop 5.5%; outlook reaffirmed
Wendy's reported first quarter 2026 results for the period ended March 29, 2026. Total revenues rose 3.3% to $540.6 million, but net income fell 42.1% to $22.7 million and global systemwide sales declined 5.5%, driven largely by lower U.S. same-restaurant sales. The company reaffirmed its full-year 2026 outlook, which includes adjusted EBITDA of $460 million to $480 million.
Key points
- Net income was $22.7 million, down from $39.2 million a year earlier; diluted EPS was $0.12 versus $0.19
- Adjusted EBITDA was $111.3 million, down 10.6%; U.S. Company-operated restaurant margin fell to 11.4% from 14.8%
- International systemwide sales grew 6.0%; a franchise agreement to build up to 1,000 restaurants in China was announced
- No shares were repurchased in the first quarter or through the release date; a $0.14 quarterly dividend is payable June 15, 2026
The filing
Written by AI (Anthropic Claude, claude-haiku-5-5) on Nov 8, 2026, 6:57 AM ET, from the text of the filing and its press-release exhibits only. Written later: this filing was briefed after the fact, when past filings were added to the site, so the brief may be read with hindsight; the filing itself is the record of what was known on May 08, 2026.
Briefs are written by AI from the filing text (each brief's own page names the model) and can contain mistakes — open the filing before acting on anything. Impact (1-5) and tone are the model's reading of the filing for shareholders, not a price forecast. Not investment advice.