Form 10-Q - Quarterly report [Sections 13 or 15(d)]

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q


☒						QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the quarterly period ended September 29, 2024


☐						TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from ______________ to _______________

Commission file number: 1-2207

THE WENDY’S COMPANY

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


Delaware		38-0471180
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)		(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

One Dave Thomas Blvd.
Dublin,	Ohio	43017
(Address of principal executive offices)		(Zip Code)

(614) 764-3100

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:


Title of each class	Trading Symbol(s)	Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock, $.10 par value	WEN	The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.


Large accelerated filer	☒	Accelerated filer	☐
Non-accelerated filer	☐	Smaller reporting company	☐
		Emerging growth company	☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

Yes ☐ No ☒

There were 203,845,085 shares of The Wendy’s Company common stock outstanding as of October 24, 2024.

THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

INDEX TO FORM 10-Q


			Page
PART I: FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Item 1. Financial Statements			4
Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of Sept ember 29 , 2024 and December 31, 2023			4
Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three and nine months ended Sept ember 29 , 2024 and October 1 , 2023			5
Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income for the three and nine months ended September 29 , 2024 and October 1 , 2023			6
Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity for the three and nine months ended Septe mber 29 , 2024 and October 1 , 2023			7
Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the nine months ended September 2 9 , 2024 and October 1 , 2023			9
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements			10
Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations			25
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk			40
Item 4. Controls and Procedures			40

PART II: OTHER INFORMATION			41
Item 1. Legal Proceedings			42
Item 1A. Risk Factors			43
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds			43
Item 6. Exhibits			44
Signatures			45

Table of Contents

PART I. FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 1. Financial Statements.

THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(In Thousands Except Par Value)


	September 29, 2024		December 31, 2023
ASSETS	(Unaudited)
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	482,224	$	516,037
Restricted cash	35,180		35,848
Accounts and notes receivable, net	111,413		121,683
Inventories	6,251		6,690
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	32,816		39,640
Advertising funds restricted assets	115,329		117,755
Total current assets	783,213		837,653
Properties	894,200		891,080
Finance lease assets	235,780		228,936
Operating lease assets	686,286		705,615
Goodwill	773,187		773,727
Other intangible assets	1,199,413		1,219,129
Investments	31,758		34,445
Net investment in sales-type and direct financing leases	285,711		313,664
Other assets	183,675		178,577
Total assets	$	5,073,223	$	5,182,826

LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Current portion of long-term debt	$	29,250	$	29,250
Current portion of finance lease liabilities	21,952		20,250
Current portion of operating lease liabilities	50,578		49,353
Accounts payable	29,047		27,370
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities	128,734		135,149
Advertising funds restricted liabilities	113,511		120,558
Total current liabilities	373,072		381,930
Long-term debt	2,716,486		2,732,814
Long-term finance lease liabilities	567,242		568,767
Long-term operating lease liabilities	712,570		739,340
Deferred income taxes	270,089		270,353
Deferred franchise fees	89,300		90,132
Other liabilities	84,611		89,711
Total liabilities	4,813,370		4,873,047
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders’ equity:
Common stock, $0.10 par value; 1,500,000 shares authorized; 470,424 shares issued; 203,089 and 205,397 shares outstanding, respectively	47,042		47,042
Additional paid-in capital	2,967,927		2,960,035
Retained earnings	403,259		409,863
Common stock held in treasury, at cost; 267,335 and 265,027 shares, respectively	(3,097,785)		(3,048,786)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(60,590)		(58,375)
Total stockholders’ equity	259,853		309,779
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$	5,073,223	$	5,182,826

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

Table of Contents

THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
	(Unaudited)
Revenues:
Sales	$	230,403	$	234,721	$	693,081	$	703,358
Franchise royalty revenue and fees	153,868		149,345		458,038		444,070
Franchise rental income	59,314		57,567		177,938		173,407
Advertising funds revenue	123,154		108,922		343,162		320,092
	566,739		550,555		1,672,219		1,640,927
Costs and expenses:
Cost of sales	195,638		199,522		587,637		597,068
Franchise support and other costs	16,047		14,806		47,011		41,853
Franchise rental expense	32,237		31,876		96,405		94,901
Advertising funds expense	129,732		107,895		357,923		319,174
General and administrative	62,794		59,288		188,047		184,306
Depreciation and amortization (exclusive of amortization of cloud computing arrangements shown separately below)	36,996		34,288		110,006		101,258
Amortization of cloud computing arrangements	3,576		3,844		10,637		7,692
System optimization gains, net	(420)		(120)		(573)		(119)
Reorganization and realignment costs	354		611		8,479		8,100
Impairment of long-lived assets	178		59		2,873		513
Other operating income, net	(5,068)		(3,117)		(11,564)		(9,174)
	472,064		448,952		1,396,881		1,345,572
Operating profit	94,675		101,603		275,338		295,355
Interest expense, net	(31,270)		(30,957)		(92,800)		(93,798)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt	—		(319)		—		(1,585)
Investment income (loss), net	—		—		11		(10,389)
Other income, net	6,246		7,637		19,382		22,546
Income before income taxes	69,651		77,964		201,931		212,129
Provision for income taxes	(19,427)		(19,915)		(55,071)		(54,627)
Net income	$	50,224	$	58,049	$	146,860	$	157,502

Net income per share:
Basic	$	.25	$	.28	$	.72	$	.75
Diluted	$	.25	$	.28	$	.71	$	.74

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

Table of Contents

THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME

(In Thousands)


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
	(Unaudited)
Net income	$	50,224	$	58,049	$	146,860	$	157,502
Other comprehensive income (loss):
Foreign currency translation adjustment	4,382		(4,533)		(2,215)		574
Other comprehensive income (loss)	4,382		(4,533)		(2,215)		574
Comprehensive income	$	54,606	$	53,516	$	144,645	$	158,076

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

Table of Contents

THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

(In Thousands)


	Common Stock		Additional Paid-In Capital		Retained Earnings		Common Stock Held in Treasury		Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss		Total

	(Unaudited)
Balance at December 31, 2023	$	47,042	$	2,960,035	$	409,863	$	(3,048,786)	$	(58,375)	$	309,779
Net income	—		—		41,993		—		—		41,993
Other comprehensive loss	—		—		—		—		(4,586)		(4,586)
Cash dividends	—		—		(51,374)		—		—		(51,374)
Repurchases of common stock	—		—		—		(7,216)		—		(7,216)
Share-based compensation	—		5,853		—		—		—		5,853
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	—		179		—		1,036		—		1,215
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	—		(3,855)		—		1,778		—		(2,077)
Other	—		29		(17)		55		—		67
Balance at March 31, 2024	$	47,042	$	2,962,241	$	400,465	$	(3,053,133)	$	(62,961)	$	293,654
Net income	—		—		54,643		—		—		54,643
Other comprehensive loss	—		—		—		—		(2,011)		(2,011)
Cash dividends	—		—		(51,252)		—		—		(51,252)
Repurchases of common stock	—		—		—		(27,493)		—		(27,493)
Share-based compensation	—		5,824		—		—		—		5,824
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	—		(134)		—		874		—		740
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	—		(3,484)		—		3,058		—		(426)
Other	—		32		(20)		62		—		74
Balance at June 30, 2024	$	47,042	$	2,964,479	$	403,836	$	(3,076,632)	$	(64,972)	$	273,753
Net income	—		—		50,224		—		—		50,224
Other comprehensive income	—		—		—		—		4,382		4,382
Cash dividends	—		—		(50,785)		—		—		(50,785)
Repurchases of common stock	—		—		—		(25,418)		—		(25,418)
Share-based compensation	—		6,814		—		—		—		6,814
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	—		258		—		2,133		—		2,391
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	—		(3,654)		—		2,069		—		(1,585)
Other	—		30		(16)		63		—		77
Balance at September 29, 2024	$	47,042	$	2,967,927	$	403,259	$	(3,097,785)	$	(60,590)	$	259,853

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

Table of Contents

THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY—CONTINUED

(In Thousands)


	Common Stock		Additional Paid-In Capital		Retained Earnings		Common Stock Held in Treasury		Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss		Total

	(Unaudited)
Balance at January 1, 2023	$	47,042	$	2,937,885	$	414,749	$	(2,869,780)	$	(64,176)	$	465,720
Net income	—		—		39,821		—		—		39,821
Other comprehensive income	—		—		—		—		158		158
Cash dividends	—		—		(53,103)		—		—		(53,103)
Repurchases of common stock	—		—		—		(38,810)		—		(38,810)
Share-based compensation	—		4,609		—		—		—		4,609
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	—		808		—		1,808		—		2,616
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	—		(2,222)		—		678		—		(1,544)
Other	—		58		(22)		54		—		90
Balance at April 2, 2023	$	47,042	$	2,941,138	$	401,445	$	(2,906,050)	$	(64,018)	$	419,557
Net income	—		—		59,632		—		—		59,632
Other comprehensive income	—		—		—		—		4,949		4,949
Cash dividends	—		—		(52,612)		—		—		(52,612)
Repurchases of common stock	—		—		—		(50,183)		—		(50,183)
Share-based compensation	—		5,609		—		—		—		5,609
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	—		1,136		—		3,829		—		4,965
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	—		(2,182)		—		1,283		—		(899)
Other	—		53		(16)		60		—		97
Balance at July 2, 2023	$	47,042	$	2,945,754	$	408,449	$	(2,951,061)	$	(59,069)	$	391,115
Net income	—		—		58,049		—		—		58,049
Other comprehensive loss	—		—		—		—		(4,533)		(4,533)
Cash dividends	—		—		(52,156)		—		—		(52,156)
Repurchases of common stock	—		—		—		(56,714)		—		(56,714)
Share-based compensation	—		6,551		—		—		—		6,551
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	—		210		—		894		—		1,104
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	—		(1,658)		—		702		—		(956)
Other	—		59		(18)		63		—		104
Balance at October 1, 2023	$	47,042	$	2,950,916	$	414,324	$	(3,006,116)	$	(63,602)	$	342,564

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

Table of Contents

THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(In Thousands)


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
	(Unaudited)
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income	$	146,860	$	157,502
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization (exclusive of amortization of cloud computing arrangements shown separately below)	110,006		101,258
Amortization of cloud computing arrangements	10,637		7,692
Share-based compensation	18,491		16,769
Impairment of long-lived assets	2,873		513
Deferred income tax	(465)		(502)
Non-cash rental expense, net	31,973		30,724
Change in operating lease liabilities	(36,461)		(35,319)
Net receipt of deferred vendor incentives	1,449		4,007
System optimization (gains), net	(573)		(119)
Distributions received from joint ventures, net of equity in earnings	2,055		1,349
Long-term debt-related activities, net	5,609		7,310
Cloud computing arrangements expenditures	(10,583)		(25,154)
Changes in operating assets and liabilities and other, net	4,810		3,495
Net cash provided by operating activities	286,681		269,525
Cash flows from investing activities:
Capital expenditures	(52,361)		(55,689)
Franchise development fund	(21,040)		(1,947)

Dispositions	3,222		280

Notes receivable, net	1,383		1,825
Net cash used in investing activities	(68,796)		(55,531)
Cash flows from financing activities:

Repayments of long-term debt	(21,937)		(61,280)
Repayments of finance lease liabilities	(15,421)		(16,947)

Repurchases of common stock	(60,056)		(142,413)
Dividends	(153,411)		(157,871)
Proceeds from stock option exercises	4,651		9,113
Payments related to tax withholding for share-based compensation	(4,395)		(3,827)
Net cash used in financing activities	(250,569)		(373,225)
Net cash used in operations before effect of exchange rate changes on cash	(32,684)		(159,231)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash	(1,603)		307
Net decrease in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	(34,287)		(158,924)
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of period	588,816		831,801
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period	$	554,529	$	672,877

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

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THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

(1) Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements (the “Financial Statements”) of The Wendy’s Company (“The Wendy’s Company” and, together with its subsidiaries, the “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our”) have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and, therefore, do not include all information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. In our opinion, the Financial Statements contain all adjustments of a normal recurring nature necessary to present fairly our financial position as of September 29, 2024, the results of our operations for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023 and cash flows for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023. The results of operations for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the full 2024 fiscal year. The Financial Statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements for The Wendy’s Company and notes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 (the “Form 10-K”).

The principal 100% owned subsidiary of the Company is Wendy’s International, LLC and its subsidiaries (“Wendy’s”). The Company manages and internally reports its business in the following segments: (1) Wendy’s U.S., (2) Wendy’s International and (3) Global Real Estate & Development. See Note 16 for further information.

We report on a fiscal year consisting of 52 or 53 weeks ending on the Sunday closest to or on December 31. All three- and nine-month periods presented herein contain 13 weeks and 39 weeks, respectively. All references to years, quarters and months relate to fiscal periods rather than calendar periods.

Our significant interim accounting policies include the recognition of advertising funds expense in proportion to advertising funds revenue.

(2) Revenue

Disaggregation of Revenue

The following tables disaggregate revenue by segment and source:


	Wendy’s U.S.		Wendy’s International		Global Real Estate & Development		Total
Three Months Ended September 29, 2024
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	222,745	$	7,658	$	—	$	230,403
Franchise royalty revenue	114,379		18,222		—		132,601
Franchise fees	17,859		2,306		1,102		21,267
Franchise rental income	—		—		59,314		59,314
Advertising funds revenue	113,742		9,412		—		123,154
Total revenues	$	468,725	$	37,598	$	60,416	$	566,739

Three Months Ended October 1, 2023
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	227,674	$	7,047	$	—	$	234,721
Franchise royalty revenue	112,698		17,390		—		130,088
Franchise fees	17,079		1,597		581		19,257
Franchise rental income	—		—		57,567		57,567
Advertising funds revenue	99,789		9,133		—		108,922
Total revenues	$	457,240	$	35,167	$	58,148	$	550,555

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THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)


	Wendy’s U.S.		Wendy’s International		Global Real Estate & Development		Total
Nine Months Ended September 29, 2024
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	673,364	$	19,717	$	—	$	693,081
Franchise royalty revenue	341,229		53,370		—		394,599
Franchise fees	53,511		6,584		3,344		63,439
Franchise rental income	—		—		177,938		177,938
Advertising funds revenue	316,059		27,103		—		343,162
Total revenues	$	1,384,163	$	106,774	$	181,282	$	1,672,219

Nine Months Ended October 1, 2023
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	685,168	$	18,190	$	—	$	703,358
Franchise royalty revenue	333,958		50,408		—		384,366
Franchise fees	51,812		4,515		3,377		59,704
Franchise rental income	—		—		173,407		173,407
Advertising funds revenue	296,043		24,049		—		320,092
Total revenues	$	1,366,981	$	97,162	$	176,784	$	1,640,927

Contract Balances

The following table provides information about receivables and contract liabilities (deferred franchise fees) from contracts with customers:


	September 29, 2024 (a)		December 31, 2023 (a)
Receivables, which are included in “Accounts and notes receivable, net” (b)	$	54,814	$	55,293
Receivables, which are included in “Advertising funds restricted assets”	68,354		76,838
Deferred franchise fees (c)	100,754		100,805

_______________

(a)Excludes funds collected from the sale of gift cards, which are primarily reimbursed to franchisees upon redemption at franchised restaurants and do not ultimately result in the recognition of revenue in the Company’s condensed consolidated statements of operations.

(b)Includes receivables related to “Sales” and “Franchise royalty revenue and fees.”

(c)Deferred franchise fees are included in “Accrued expenses and other current liabilities” and “Deferred franchise fees” and totaled $11,454 and $89,300, respectively, as of September 29, 2024, and $10,673 and $90,132, respectively, as of December 31, 2023.

Significant changes in deferred franchise fees are as follows:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Deferred franchise fees at beginning of period	$	100,805	$	99,208
Revenue recognized during the period	(8,873)		(9,016)
New deferrals due to cash received and other	8,822		9,697
Deferred franchise fees at end of period	$	100,754	$	99,889

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THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees

The following table reflects the estimated franchise fees to be recognized in the future related to performance obligations that are unsatisfied at the end of the period:


Estimate for fiscal year:
2024 (a)	$	6,427
2025	6,685
2026	6,546
2027	6,439
2028	6,320
Thereafter	68,337
	$	100,754

_______________

(a)Represents franchise fees expected to be recognized for the remainder of 2024, which includes development-related franchise fees expected to be recognized over a duration of one year or less.

(3) System Optimization Gains, Net

The Company’s system optimization initiative included a shift from Company-operated restaurants to franchised restaurants over time, through acquisitions and dispositions, as well as facilitating franchisee-to-franchisee restaurant transfers (“Franchise Flips”). As of September 29, 2024, Company-operated restaurant ownership was approximately 5% of the total system. While the Company has no plans to move its ownership away from approximately 5% of the total system, the Company expects to continue to optimize the Wendy’s system through Franchise Flips, as well as evaluating strategic acquisitions of franchised restaurants and strategic dispositions of Company-operated restaurants to existing and new franchisees, to further strengthen the franchisee base, drive new restaurant development and accelerate reimages. During the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, the Company facilitated 14 and 88 Franchise Flips, respectively. Additionally, during the nine months ended September 29, 2024, the Company completed the sale of one Company-operated restaurant to a franchisee. No Company-operated restaurants were sold to or purchased from franchisees during the nine months ended October 1, 2023.

Gains and losses recognized on dispositions are recorded to “System optimization gains, net” in our condensed consolidated statements of operations. Costs related to acquisitions and dispositions under our system optimization initiative are recorded to “Reorganization and realignment costs,” which are further described in Note 4. All other costs incurred related to facilitating Franchise Flips are recorded to “Franchise support and other costs.”

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THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

The following is a summary of the disposition activity recorded as a result of our system optimization initiative:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Number of restaurants sold to franchisees	1		—		1		—

Proceeds from sales of restaurants	$	834	$	—	$	834	$	—
Net assets sold (a)	(725)		—		(725)		—
Other	6		—		6		—
	115		—		115		—
Post-closing adjustments on sales of restaurants (b)	440		537		694		537
Gain on sales of restaurants, net	555		537		809		537

Loss on sales of other assets, net (c)	(135)		(417)		(236)		(418)
System optimization gains, net	$	420	$	120	$	573	$	119

_______________

(a)Net assets sold consisted primarily of land.

(b)Represents the recognition of deferred gains as a result of the resolution of certain contingencies related to the extension of lease terms for restaurants previously sold to franchisees.

(c)During the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024, the Company received net cash proceeds of $1,787 and $2,388, respectively, primarily from the sale of surplus and other properties. During the nine months ended October 1, 2023, the Company received net cash proceeds of $280 primarily from the sale of surplus and other properties.

Assets Held for Sale

As of September 29, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the Company had assets held for sale of $2,517 and $2,689, respectively, primarily consisting of surplus properties. Assets held for sale are included in “Prepaid expenses and other current assets.”

(4) Reorganization and Realignment Costs

The following is a summary of the initiatives included in “Reorganization and realignment costs:”


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Organizational redesign	$	296	$	579	$	8,327	$	7,986

Other reorganization and realignment plans	58		32		152		114
Reorganization and realignment costs	$	354	$	611	$	8,479	$	8,100

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NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

Organizational Redesign

In February 2023, the Board of Directors approved a plan to redesign the Company’s organizational structure to better support the execution of the Company’s long-term growth strategy by maximizing organizational efficiency and streamlining decision making (the “Organizational Redesign Plan”). As a result of the Organizational Redesign Plan, the Company held its general and administrative expense in 2023 relatively flat compared with 2022. Additionally, in January 2024, the Board of Directors announced the appointment of Kirk Tanner as the Company’s new President and Chief Executive Officer, effective February 5, 2024. Mr. Tanner succeeded Todd A. Penegor, the Company’s previous President and Chief Executive Officer, who departed from the Company in February 2024. The Company expects to incur total costs of approximately $18,000 related to the Organizational Redesign Plan, including costs related to the succession of the President and Chief Executive Officer role. During the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, the Company recognized costs totaling $8,327 and $7,986, respectively, which primarily included severance and related employee costs. The Company expects to incur additional costs aggregating approximately $800, comprised primarily of share-based compensation. The Company expects costs related to the Organizational Redesign Plan to continue into 2026.

The following is a summary of the costs recorded as a result of the Organizational Redesign Plan:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended				Total Incurred Since Inception
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Severance and related employee costs	$	12	$	114	$	7,322	$	5,674	$	13,565
Recruitment and relocation costs	75		140		157		304		711
Third-party and other costs	57		173		120		904		1,117
	144		427		7,599		6,882		15,393
Share-based compensation (a)	152		152		728		1,104		1,998
Total organizational redesign	$	296	$	579	$	8,327	$	7,986	$	17,391

_______________

(a)Primarily represents the accelerated recognition of share-based compensation resulting from the termination of employees under the Organizational Redesign Plan.

As of September 29, 2024, the accruals for the Organizational Redesign Plan are included in “Accrued expenses and other current liabilities” and “Other liabilities” and totaled $4,210 and $1,215, respectively. The tables below present a rollforward of our accruals for the Organizational Redesign Plan.


	Balance December 31, 2023		Charges		Payments		Balance September 29, 2024
Severance and related employee costs	$	1,692	$	7,322	$	(3,589)	$	5,425
Recruitment and relocation costs	—		157		(157)		—
Third-party and other costs	—		120		(120)		—
	$	1,692	$	7,599	$	(3,866)	$	5,425


	Balance January 1, 2023		Charges		Payments		Balance October 1, 2023
Severance and related employee costs	$	—	$	5,674	$	(3,524)	$	2,150
Recruitment and relocation costs	—		304		(304)		—
Third-party and other costs	—		904		(904)		—
	$	—	$	6,882	$	(4,732)	$	2,150

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NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

Other Reorganization and Realignment Plans

Costs incurred under the Company’s other reorganization and realignment plans were not material during the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023. The Company does not expect to incur any material additional costs under these plans.

(5) Investments

The following is a summary of the carrying value of our investments:


	September 29, 2024		December 31, 2023
Equity method investment	$	30,040	$	32,727
Other investments in equity securities	1,718		1,718
	$	31,758	$	34,445

Equity Method Investment

Wendy’s has a 50% share in a partnership in a Canadian restaurant real estate joint venture (“TimWen”) with a subsidiary of Restaurant Brands International Inc., a quick-service restaurant company that owns the Tim Hortons® brand (Tim Hortons is a registered trademark of Tim Hortons USA Inc.). The Company has significant influence over this investee. Such investment is accounted for using the equity method, under which our results of operations include our share of the income of the investee in “Other operating income, net.”

Presented below is activity related to our investment in TimWen included in our condensed consolidated financial statements:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Balance at beginning of period	$	32,727	$	33,921

Equity in earnings for the period	10,493		10,012
Amortization of purchase price adjustments (a)	(1,870)		(2,051)
	8,623		7,961
Distributions received	(10,678)		(9,310)
Foreign currency translation adjustment included in “Other comprehensive income (loss)”	(632)		151
Balance at end of period	$	30,040	$	32,723

_______________

(a)Purchase price adjustments that impacted the carrying value of the Company’s investment in TimWen are being amortized over the average original aggregate life of 21 years.

Other Investments in Equity Securities

During the nine months ended October 1, 2023, the Company recorded impairment charges of $10,389 for the difference between the estimated fair value and the carrying value of an investment in equity securities.

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NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

(6) Fair Value Measurements

Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. Valuation techniques under the accounting guidance related to fair value measurements are based on observable and unobservable inputs. Observable inputs reflect readily obtainable data from independent sources, while unobservable inputs reflect our market assumptions. These inputs are classified into the following hierarchy:

•Level 1 Inputs - Quoted prices for identical assets or liabilities in active markets.

•Level 2 Inputs - Quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets; quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active; and model-derived valuations whose inputs are observable or whose significant value drivers are observable.

•Level 3 Inputs - Pricing inputs are unobservable for the assets or liabilities and include situations where there is little, if any, market activity for the assets or liabilities. The inputs into the determination of fair value require significant management judgment or estimation.

Financial Instruments

The following table presents the carrying amounts and estimated fair values of the Company’s financial instruments:


	September 29, 2024				December 31, 2023
	Carrying Amount		Fair Value		Carrying Amount		Fair Value		Fair Value Measurements
Financial assets
Cash equivalents	$	333,761	$	333,761	$	365,901	$	365,901	Level 1
Other investments in equity securities (a)	1,718		1,718		1,718		1,718		Level 2

Financial liabilities (b)
Series 2022-1 Class A-2-I Notes	97,750		95,635		98,500		92,289		Level 2
Series 2022-1 Class A-2-II Notes	387,134		367,777		390,134		370,577		Level 2
Series 2021-1 Class A-2-I Notes	419,894		379,609		423,269		362,572		Level 2
Series 2021-1 Class A-2-II Notes	628,655		553,411		633,530		530,581		Level 2
Series 2019-1 Class A-2-I Notes	354,673		348,204		357,673		341,606		Level 2
Series 2019-1 Class A-2-II Notes	399,748		388,131		403,123		374,058		Level 2
Series 2018-1 Class A-2-II Notes	437,537		425,767		441,099		412,754		Level 2
7% debentures, due in 2025	48,744		49,586		48,237		49,431		Level 2

_______________

(a)The fair value of our other investments in equity securities is based on our review of information provided by the investment manager, which is based on observable price changes in orderly transactions for a similar investment of the same issuer.

(b)The fair values were based on quoted market prices in markets that are not considered active markets.

The carrying amounts of cash, accounts payable and accrued expenses approximate fair value due to the short-term nature of those items. The carrying amounts of accounts and notes receivable, net (both current and non-current) approximate fair value due to the effect of the related allowance for doubtful accounts. Our cash equivalents are the only financial assets measured and recorded at fair value on a recurring basis.

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NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

Non-Recurring Fair Value Measurements

Assets and liabilities remeasured to fair value on a non-recurring basis resulted in impairment that we have recorded to “Impairment of long-lived assets” in our condensed consolidated statements of operations.

Total impairment losses may reflect the impact of remeasuring long-lived assets held and used (including land, buildings, leasehold improvements, favorable lease assets and right-of-use assets) to fair value as a result of (1) the deterioration in operating performance of certain Company-operated restaurants and (2) the Company’s decision to lease and/or sublease the land and/or buildings to franchisees in connection with the sale or anticipated sale of restaurants, including any subsequent lease modifications. The fair values of long-lived assets held and used presented in the tables below represent the remaining carrying value and were estimated based on either discounted cash flows of future anticipated lease and sublease income or discounted cash flows of future anticipated Company-operated restaurant performance. Total impairment losses may also include the impact of remeasuring long-lived assets held for sale. The fair values of long-lived assets held for sale presented in the tables below represent the remaining carrying value and were estimated based on current market values. See Note 7 for further information on impairment of our long-lived assets.


			Fair Value Measurements
	September 29, 2024		Level 1		Level 2		Level 3
Held and used	$	2,372	$	—	$	—	$	2,372
Held for sale	2,241		—		—		2,241
Total	$	4,613	$	—	$	—	$	4,613


			Fair Value Measurements
	December 31, 2023		Level 1		Level 2		Level 3
Held and used	$	1,212	$	—	$	—	$	1,212
Held for sale	1,044		—		—		1,044
Total	$	2,256	$	—	$	—	$	2,256

(7) Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

The Company records impairment charges as a result of (1) the deterioration in operating performance of certain Company-operated restaurants, (2) the Company’s decision to lease and/or sublease properties to franchisees in connection with the sale or anticipated sale of Company-operated restaurants, including any subsequent lease modifications and (3) classifying surplus properties as held for sale.

The following is a summary of impairment losses recorded, which represent the excess of the carrying amount over the fair value of the affected assets and are included in “Impairment of long-lived assets:”


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Company-operated restaurants	$	—	$	—	$	2,418	$	428
Surplus properties	178		59		455		85
	$	178	$	59	$	2,873	$	513

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NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

(8) Income Taxes

The Company’s effective tax rate for the three months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023 was 27.9% and 25.5%, respectively. The Company’s effective tax rate varied from the U.S. federal statutory rate of 21% for the three months ended September 29, 2024 primarily due to state income taxes and the tax effects of our foreign operations.

The Company’s effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023 was 27.3% and 25.8%, respectively. The Company’s effective tax rate varied from the U.S. federal statutory rate of 21% for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 primarily due to state income taxes and the tax effects of our foreign operations.

There were no significant changes to the unrecognized tax benefits or related interest and penalties for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024. During the next twelve months, we believe it is reasonably possible the Company will reduce unrecognized tax benefits by up to $220 due to lapses of statutes of limitations.

The current portion of refundable income taxes was $9,307 and $5,284 as of September 29, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively, and is included in “Accounts and notes receivable, net.” There were no long-term refundable income taxes as of September 29, 2024 or December 31, 2023.

(9) Net Income Per Share

The calculation of basic and diluted net income per share was as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Net income	$	50,224	$	58,049	$	146,860	$	157,502

Common stock:
Weighted average basic shares outstanding	203,264		208,834		204,518		210,668
Dilutive effect of stock options and restricted shares	990		1,768		1,285		2,185
Weighted average diluted shares outstanding	204,254		210,602		205,803		212,853

Net income per share:
Basic	$	.25	$	.28	$	.72	$	.75
Diluted	$	.25	$	.28	$	.71	$	.74

Basic net income per share for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023 was computed by dividing net income amounts by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding. Diluted net income per share was computed by dividing net income by the weighted average number of basic shares outstanding plus the potential common share effect of dilutive stock options and restricted shares. We excluded potential common shares of 8,605 and 7,667 for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024, respectively, and 5,204 and 4,719 for the three and nine months ended October 1, 2023, respectively, from our diluted net income per share calculation as they would have had anti-dilutive effects.

(10) Stockholders’ Equity

Dividends

During each of the first, second, and third quarters of 2024 and 2023, the Company paid dividends per share of $.25.

Repurchases of Common Stock

In January 2023, our Board of Directors authorized a repurchase program for up to $500,000 of our common stock through February 28, 2027, when and if market conditions warrant and to the extent legally permissible (the “January 2023

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NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

Authorization”). During the nine months ended September 29, 2024, the Company repurchased 3,447 shares under the January 2023 Authorization with an aggregate purchase price of $59,637, of which $203 was accrued as of September 29, 2024, and excluding excise tax of $441 and commissions of $49. As of September 29, 2024, the Company had $250,363 of availability remaining under the January 2023 Authorization. Subsequent to September 29, 2024 through October 24, 2024, the Company repurchased 150 shares under the January 2023 Authorization with an aggregate purchase price of $2,679, excluding applicable excise tax and commissions.

During the nine months ended October 1, 2023, the Company repurchased 6,730 shares under the January 2023 Authorization with an aggregate purchase price of $144,320, of which $2,001 was accrued as of October 1, 2023, and excluding excise tax of $1,293 and commissions of $94.

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss

The following table provides a rollforward of accumulated other comprehensive loss, which is entirely comprised of foreign currency translation:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Balance at beginning of period	$	(58,375)	$	(64,176)
Foreign currency translation	(2,215)		574
Balance at end of period	$	(60,590)	$	(63,602)

(11) Leases

Nature of Leases

The Company operates restaurants that are located on sites owned by us and sites leased by us from third parties. In addition, the Company owns sites and leases sites from third parties, which it leases and/or subleases to franchisees. The Company also leases restaurant, office and transportation equipment. As of September 29, 2024, the nature of restaurants operated by the Company and its franchisees was as follows:


			September 29, 2024
Company-operated restaurants:
Owned land and building			154
Owned building and held long-term land leases			145
Leased land and building			112
Total Company-operated restaurants			411

Franchisee-operated restaurants:
Company-owned properties leased to franchisees			492
Company-leased properties subleased to franchisees			1,161
Other franchisee-operated restaurants			5,228
Total franchisee-operated restaurants			6,881
Total Company-operated and franchisee-operated restaurants			7,292

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NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

Company as Lessee

The components of lease cost are as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Finance lease cost:
Amortization of finance lease assets	$	4,779	$	4,111	$	13,448	$	12,232
Interest on finance lease liabilities	10,921		10,664		32,278		32,157
	15,700		14,775		45,726		44,389
Operating lease cost	21,496		21,577		64,721		64,455
Variable lease cost (a)	17,087		16,889		50,940		50,489
Short-term lease cost	1,478		1,466		4,098		4,433
Total operating lease cost (b)	40,061		39,932		119,759		119,377
Total lease cost	$	55,761	$	54,707	$	165,485	$	163,766

_______________

(a)Includes expenses for executory costs of $10,108 and $9,777 for the three months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively, and $30,362 and $29,797 for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively, for which the Company is reimbursed by sublessees.

(b)Includes $32,197 and $31,824 for the three months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively, and $96,270 and $94,751 for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively, recorded to “Franchise rental expense” for leased properties that are subsequently leased to franchisees. Also includes $7,299 and $7,570 for the three months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively, and $22,089 and $22,981 for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively, recorded to “Cost of sales” for leases for Company-operated restaurants.

Company as Lessor

The components of lease income are as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Sales-type and direct-financing leases:
Selling profit	$	67	$	354	$	139	$	1,555
Interest income (a)	7,110		7,853		22,007		23,583

Operating lease income	41,882		40,567		126,329		123,352
Variable lease income	17,432		17,000		51,609		50,055
Franchise rental income (b)	$	59,314	$	57,567	$	177,938	$	173,407

_______________

(a)Included in “Interest expense, net.”

(b)Includes sublease income of $43,698 and $42,545 recognized during the three months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively, and $131,530 and $128,457 recognized during the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively. Sublease income includes lessees’ variable payments to the Company for executory costs of $10,112 and $9,811 for the three months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023,

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NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

respectively, and $30,356 and $29,704 for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively.

(12) Supplemental Cash Flow Information

The following table includes supplemental non-cash investing and financing activities:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Supplemental non-cash investing and financing activities:
Capital expenditures included in accounts payable	$	10,734	$	10,856
Finance leases	21,531		13,436

The following table includes a reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash:


	September 29, 2024		December 31, 2023
Reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	482,224	$	516,037
Restricted cash	35,180		35,848
Restricted cash, included in Advertising funds restricted assets	37,125		36,931
Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	$	554,529	$	588,816

(13) Transactions with Related Parties

Except as described below, the Company did not have any significant changes in or transactions with its related parties during the current fiscal period since those reported in the Form 10-K.

TimWen Lease and Management Fee Payments

A wholly-owned subsidiary of Wendy’s leases restaurant facilities from TimWen, which are then subleased to franchisees for the operation of Wendy’s/Tim Hortons combo units in Canada. Wendy’s paid TimWen $16,065 and $15,713 under these lease agreements during the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively, which is recorded to “Franchise rental expense.” In addition, TimWen paid Wendy’s a management fee under the TimWen joint venture agreement of $179 and $181 during the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively, which is included as a reduction to “General and administrative.”

Transactions with QSCC

Wendy’s has a purchasing co-op relationship structure with its franchisees that establishes Quality Supply Chain Co-op, Inc. (“QSCC”). QSCC manages, for the Wendy’s system in the U.S. and Canada, contracts for the purchase and distribution of food, proprietary paper, operating supplies and equipment under national agreements with pricing based upon total system volume. QSCC’s supply chain management facilitates continuity of supply and provides consolidated purchasing efficiencies while monitoring and seeking to minimize possible obsolete inventory throughout the Wendy’s supply chain in the U.S. and Canada.

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NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

Wendy’s and its franchisees pay sourcing fees to third-party vendors on certain products sourced by QSCC. Such sourcing fees are remitted by these vendors to QSCC and are the primary means of funding QSCC’s operations. In addition, QSCC collects certain rebates, price variance and other recoveries, technology fees, convention fees and other funding from third-party vendors as part of the administration and management of the Wendy’s supply chain in the U.S. and Canada. Should QSCC’s sourcing fees exceed its expected needs, QSCC’s board of directors may return some or all of the excess to its members in the form of a patronage dividend. Wendy’s recorded its share of patronage dividends of $3,493 during the nine months ended September 29, 2024, of which $2,909 is included in “Other operating income, net” and $584 is included as a reduction of “Cost of sales.” Wendy’s recorded its share of patronage dividends of $363 during the nine months ended October 1, 2023, all of which is included as a reduction of “Cost of sales.”

Transactions with Yellow Cab

Certain family members and/or affiliates of Mr. Nelson Peltz, our former Chairman, Mr. Peter May, our Senior Vice Chairman, and Mr. Matthew Peltz, our Vice Chairman, hold minority ownership interests in Yellow Cab Holdings, LLC (“Yellow Cab”), a Wendy’s franchisee, that as of September 29, 2024 owns and operates 87 Wendy’s restaurants, and/or certain of the operating companies managed by Yellow Cab. During the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, the Company recognized $11,397 and $11,143, respectively, in royalty, advertising fund, lease and other income from Yellow Cab and related entities. In all transactions involving Yellow Cab, the Company’s standard franchisee recruiting and approval processes were followed, no modifications were made to the Company’s standard franchise agreements or related documents, and all deal terms and transaction documents were negotiated and executed on an arm’s-length basis, consistent with the Company’s comparable franchise transactions and relationships. As of September 29, 2024 and December 31, 2023, $1,099 and $1,153, respectively, was due from Yellow Cab for such income, which is included in “Accounts and notes receivable, net” and “Advertising funds restricted assets.”

Transactions with AMC

In February 2023, Ms. Kristin Dolan, a director of the Company, was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of AMC Networks Inc. (“AMC”). During the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, the Company purchased approximately $1,600 and $1,800, respectively, of advertising time from a subsidiary of AMC. The Company’s advertising spend with AMC was made in the ordinary course of business and approved on an arm’s-length basis, consistent with the Company’s comparable advertising decisions. As of December 31, 2023, approximately $584 was due to AMC for such advertising time, which is included in “Advertising funds restricted liabilities.” There were no amounts due to AMC as of September 29, 2024.

(14) Guarantees and Other Commitments and Contingencies

Except as described below, the Company did not have any significant changes in guarantees and other commitments and contingencies during the current fiscal period since those reported in the Form 10-K. Refer to the Form 10-K for further information regarding the Company’s additional commitments and obligations.

Franchisee Incentive Programs

To promote new restaurant development, Wendy’s has provided franchisees with certain incentive programs for qualifying new restaurants. In July and September 2024, Wendy’s announced a new development incentive structure in the U.S. and Canada and select international markets, respectively, that provides for reductions in royalty and national advertising fees for qualifying new restaurants for two, three or four years of operation based on the number of restaurants committed to under the development agreement.

Lease Guarantees

Wendy’s has guaranteed the performance of certain leases and other obligations, primarily from former Company-operated restaurant locations now operated by franchisees, amounting to $86,450 as of September 29, 2024. These leases extend through 2045. We have had no judgments against us as guarantor of these leases as of September 29, 2024. In the event of default by a franchise owner where Wendy’s is called upon to perform under its guarantee, Wendy’s has the ability to pursue repayment from the franchise owner. The liability recorded for our probable exposure associated with these lease guarantees was not material as of September 29, 2024.

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THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

Letters of Credit

As of September 29, 2024, the Company had outstanding letters of credit with various parties totaling $28,673. Substantially all of the outstanding letters of credit include amounts outstanding against the 2021-1 Variable Funding Senior Secured Notes, Class A-1. We do not expect any material loss to result from these letters of credit.

Purchase and Capital Commitments

The Company has material purchase requirements under a marketing agreement with two national broadcasters and a beverage agreement with a vendor. In August 2024, the Company amended its contract with the beverage vendor, which now expires upon reaching a threshold usage requirement or, if certain undertakings are not fulfilled, at the later of reaching a threshold usage requirement or December 31, 2034. Our total purchase requirements under the marketing agreement and the amended beverage agreement are estimated to be approximately $107,500 over the remaining life of the contracts.

(15) Legal and Environmental Matters

The Company is involved in litigation and claims incidental to our business. We provide accruals for such litigation and claims when we determine it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the loss is reasonably estimable. The Company believes it has adequate accruals for all of our legal and environmental matters. We cannot estimate the aggregate possible range of loss for our existing litigation and claims due to various reasons, including, but not limited to, many proceedings being in preliminary stages, with various motions either yet to be submitted or pending, discovery yet to occur and significant factual matters unresolved. In addition, most cases seek an indeterminate amount of damages and many involve multiple parties. Predicting the outcomes of settlement discussions or judicial or arbitral decisions is thus inherently difficult and future developments could cause these actions or claims, individually or in aggregate, to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows of a particular reporting period.

(16) Segment Information

Revenues by segment are as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Wendy’s U.S.	$	468,725	$	457,240	$	1,384,163	$	1,366,981
Wendy’s International	37,598		35,167		106,774		97,162
Global Real Estate & Development	60,416		58,148		181,282		176,784
Total revenues	$	566,739	$	550,555	$	1,672,219	$	1,640,927

Table of Contents

THE WENDY’S COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(In Thousands Except Per Share Amounts)

The following table reconciles profit by segment to the Company’s consolidated income before income taxes:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Wendy’s U.S. (a)	$	129,790	$	134,887	$	392,323	$	403,064
Wendy’s International (b)	11,046		10,831		32,411		26,808
Global Real Estate & Development	27,237		24,418		79,480		76,020
Total segment profit	168,073		170,136		$	504,214	$	505,892
Unallocated franchise support and other costs	(900)		(29)		(1,117)		(6)
Advertising funds deficit	190		1,088		651		3,509
Unallocated general and administrative (c)	(32,443)		(30,962)		(98,289)		(96,776)
Depreciation and amortization (exclusive of amortization of cloud computing arrangements shown separately below)	(36,996)		(34,288)		(110,006)		(101,258)
Amortization of cloud computing arrangements	(3,576)		(3,844)		(10,637)		(7,692)
System optimization gains, net	420		120		573		119
Reorganization and realignment costs	(354)		(611)		(8,479)		(8,100)
Impairment of long-lived assets	(178)		(59)		(2,873)		(513)
Unallocated other operating income, net	439		52		1,301		180
Interest expense, net	(31,270)		(30,957)		(92,800)		(93,798)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt	—		(319)		—		(1,585)
Investment income (loss), net	—		—		11		(10,389)
Other income, net	6,246		7,637		19,382		22,546
Income before income taxes	$	69,651	$	77,964	$	201,931	$	212,129

_______________

(a)Wendy’s U.S. includes advertising funds expense of $5,977 and $13,386 for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024 related to the Company’s funding of incremental advertising.

(b)Wendy’s International includes advertising funds expense of $622 and $1,387 for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024, respectively, and $596 and $1,802 for the three and nine months ended October 1, 2023, respectively, related to the Company’s funding of incremental advertising in Canada. In addition, Wendy’s International includes other international-related advertising (deficit) surplus of $(170) and $(640) for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024, respectively, and $535 and $(789) for the three and nine months ended October 1, 2023, respectively.

(c)Includes corporate overhead costs, such as employee compensation and related benefits.

(17) New Accounting Standards

New Accounting Standard Adopted

Common-Control Lease Arrangements

In March 2023, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued an update to amend certain lease accounting guidance that applies to arrangements between related parties under common control. The amendment requires a lessee in a common-control lease arrangement to amortize leasehold improvements that it owns over the useful life of the improvements to the common-control group, regardless of the lease term, if the lessee continues to control the use of the underlying asset through a lease. The Company adopted this amendment during the first quarter of 2024. The adoption of this amendment did not have a material impact on our condensed consolidated financial statements.

Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

Introduction

This “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” of The Wendy’s Company (“The Wendy’s Company” and, together with its subsidiaries, the “Company,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) should be read in conjunction with the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere within this report and “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 (the “Form 10-K”). There have been no material changes as of September 29, 2024 to the application of our critical accounting policies as described in Item 7 of the Form 10-K. Certain statements we make under this Item 2 constitute “forward-looking statements” under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. See “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements and Projections” in “Part II. Other Information” of this report. You should consider our forward-looking statements in light of the risks discussed in “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in “Part II. Other Information” of this report and our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements, related notes and other financial information appearing elsewhere in this report, the Form 10-K and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”).

The Wendy’s Company is the parent company of its 100% owned subsidiary holding company, Wendy’s Restaurants, LLC (“Wendy’s Restaurants”). Wendy’s Restaurants is the parent company of Wendy’s International, LLC (formerly known as Wendy’s International, Inc). Wendy’s International, LLC is the indirect parent company of (1) Quality Is Our Recipe, LLC (“Quality”), which is the owner and franchisor of the Wendy’s restaurant system in the United States (the “U.S.”) and all international jurisdictions except for Canada, and (2) Wendy’s Restaurants of Canada Inc., which is the owner and franchisor of the Wendy’s restaurant system in Canada. As used herein, unless the context requires otherwise, the term “Company” refers to The Wendy’s Company and its direct and indirect subsidiaries, and “Wendy’s” refers to Quality when the context relates to the ownership or franchising of the Wendy’s restaurant system and to Wendy’s International, LLC when the context refers to the Wendy’s brand.

Wendy’s is primarily engaged in the business of operating, developing and franchising a system of distinctive quick-service restaurants serving high quality food. Wendy’s opened its first restaurant in Columbus, Ohio in 1969. Today, Wendy’s is the second largest quick-service restaurant company in the hamburger sandwich segment in the U.S. based on traffic and dollar share, and the third largest globally with 7,292 restaurants in the U.S. and 31 foreign countries and U.S. territories as of September 29, 2024.

Each Wendy’s restaurant offers an extensive menu specializing in hamburger sandwiches and featuring filet of chicken breast sandwiches, which are prepared to order with the customer’s choice of toppings and condiments. Wendy’s menu also includes chicken nuggets, chili, french fries, baked potatoes, freshly prepared salads, soft drinks, Frosty® desserts and kids’ meals. In addition, Wendy’s restaurants sell a variety of promotional products on a limited time basis. Wendy’s also offers breakfast across the U.S. system and in Canada. Wendy’s breakfast menu features a variety of breakfast sandwiches such as the Breakfast Baconator® and sides such as seasoned potatoes.

The Company is comprised of the following segments: (1) Wendy’s U.S., (2) Wendy’s International and (3) Global Real Estate & Development. Wendy’s U.S. includes the operation and franchising of Wendy’s restaurants in the U.S. and derives its revenues from sales at Company-operated restaurants and royalties, fees and advertising fund collections from franchised restaurants. Wendy’s International includes the operation and franchising of Wendy’s restaurants in countries and territories other than the U.S. and derives its revenues from sales at Company-operated restaurants and royalties, fees and advertising fund collections from franchised restaurants. Global Real Estate & Development includes real estate activity for owned sites and sites leased from third parties, which are leased and/or subleased to franchisees, and also includes our share of the income of our TimWen real estate joint venture. In addition, Global Real Estate & Development earns fees from facilitating franchisee-to-franchisee restaurant transfers (“Franchise Flips”) and providing other development-related services to franchisees. In this “Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” the Company reports on the segment profit for each of the three segments described above. The Company measures segment profit using segment adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”). Segment adjusted EBITDA excludes certain unallocated general and administrative expenses and other items that vary from period to period without correlation to

the Company’s core operating performance. See “Results of Operations” below and Note 16 to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements contained in Item 1 herein for segment financial information.

The Company’s fiscal reporting periods consist of 52 or 53 weeks ending on the Sunday closest to December 31. All three- and nine-month periods presented herein contain 13 weeks and 39 weeks, respectively. All references to years, quarters and months relate to fiscal periods rather than calendar periods.

Executive Overview

Our Business

As of September 29, 2024, the Wendy’s restaurant system was comprised of 7,292 restaurants, with 6,011 Wendy’s restaurants in operation in the U.S. Of the U.S. restaurants, 398 were operated by the Company and 5,613 were operated by a total of 210 franchisees. In addition, at September 29, 2024, there were 1,281 Wendy’s restaurants in operation in 31 foreign countries and U.S. territories. Of the international restaurants, 1,268 were operated by a total of 109 franchisees and 13 were operated by the Company in the United Kingdom (the “U.K.”).

The revenues from our restaurant business are derived from two principal sources: (1) sales at Company-operated restaurants and (2) franchise-related revenues, including royalties, national advertising funds contributions, rents and franchise fees received from Wendy’s franchised restaurants. Company-operated restaurants comprised approximately 5% of the total Wendy’s system as of September 29, 2024.

Wendy’s operating results are impacted by a number of external factors, including commodity costs, labor costs, intense price competition, unemployment and consumer spending levels, general economic and market trends and weather.

Wendy’s long-term growth opportunities include delivering accelerated global growth through (1) driving same-restaurant sales momentum across all dayparts, (2) accelerating our consumer-facing digital platforms and technologies and (3) expanding the Company’s footprint across the globe.

Key Business Measures

We track our results of operations and manage our business using the following key business measures, which includes a non-GAAP financial measure:

•Same-Restaurant Sales - We report same-restaurant sales commencing after new restaurants have been open for 15 continuous months and as soon as reimaged restaurants reopen. Restaurants temporarily closed for more than one week are excluded from same-restaurant sales. This methodology is consistent with the metric used by our management for internal reporting and analysis. The table summarizing same-restaurant sales below in “Results of Operations” provides the same-restaurant sales percent changes.

•Company-Operated Restaurant Margin - We define Company-operated restaurant margin as sales from Company-operated restaurants less cost of sales divided by sales from Company-operated restaurants. Cost of sales includes food and paper, restaurant labor and occupancy, advertising and other operating costs. Cost of sales excludes certain costs that support restaurant operations that are not allocated to individual restaurants, which are included in “General and administrative.” Cost of sales also excludes depreciation and amortization expense and impairment of long-lived assets. Therefore, as Company-operated restaurant margin as presented excludes certain costs as described above, its usefulness may be limited and may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies in our industry.

Company-operated restaurant margin is influenced by factors such as price increases, the effectiveness of our advertising and marketing initiatives, featured products, product mix, fluctuations in food and labor costs, restaurant openings, remodels and closures and the level of our fixed and semi-variable costs.

•Systemwide Sales - Systemwide sales is a non-GAAP financial measure, which includes sales by both Company-operated restaurants and franchised restaurants. Franchised restaurants’ sales are reported by our franchisees and represent their revenues from sales at franchised Wendy’s restaurants. The Company’s consolidated financial statements do not include sales by franchised restaurants to their customers. The Company’s royalty and advertising

funds revenues are computed as percentages of sales made by Wendy’s franchisees. As a result, sales by Wendy’s franchisees have a direct effect on the Company’s royalty and advertising funds revenues and profitability.

The Company calculates same-restaurant sales and systemwide sales growth on a constant currency basis. Constant currency results exclude the impact of foreign currency translation and are derived by translating current year results at prior year average exchange rates. The Company believes excluding the impact of foreign currency translation provides better year over year comparability.

Same-restaurant sales and systemwide sales exclude sales from Argentina due to that country’s highly inflationary economy. The Company considers economies that have had cumulative inflation in excess of 100% over a three-year period as highly inflationary.

The Company believes its presentation of same-restaurant sales, Company-operated restaurant margin and systemwide sales provide a meaningful perspective of the underlying operating performance of the Company’s current business and enables investors to better understand and evaluate the Company’s historical and prospective operating performance. The Company believes that these metrics are important supplemental measures of operating performance because they highlight trends in the Company’s business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on GAAP financial measures. The Company believes investors, analysts and other interested parties use these metrics in evaluating issuers and that the presentation of these measures facilitates a comparative assessment of the Company’s operating performance. With respect to same-restaurant sales and systemwide sales, the Company also believes that the data is useful in assessing consumer demand for the Company’s products and the overall success of the Wendy’s brand.

The non-GAAP financial measure discussed above does not replace the presentation of the Company’s financial results in accordance with GAAP. Because all companies do not calculate non-GAAP financial measures in the same way, this measure as used by other companies may not be consistent with the way the Company calculates such measure.

Third Quarter Financial Highlights

•Revenue increased 2.9% to $566.7 million in the third quarter of 2024 compared with $550.6 million in the third quarter of 2023;

•Global same-restaurant sales increased 0.2%, U.S. same-restaurant sales increased 0.2% and international same-restaurant sales increased 0.7% compared with the third quarter of 2023. On a two-year basis, global same-restaurant sales increased 3.0%;

•Global Company-operated restaurant margin was 15.1% in the third quarter of 2024, an increase of 10 basis points compared with the third quarter of 2023; and

•Net income decreased 13.5% to $50.2 million in the third quarter of 2024 compared with $58.0 million in the third quarter of 2023.

Year-to-Date Financial Highlights

•Revenue increased 1.9% to $1.67 billion in the first nine months of 2024 compared with $1.64 billion in the first nine months of 2023;

•Global same-restaurant sales increased 0.7%, U.S. same-restaurant sales increased 0.5% and international same-restaurant sales increased 2.1% compared with the first nine months of 2023. On a two-year basis, global same-restaurant sales increased 5.9%;

•Global Company-operated restaurant margin was 15.2% in the first nine months of 2024, an increase of 10 basis points compared with the first nine months of 2023; and

•Net income decreased 6.8% to $146.9 million in the first nine months of 2024 compared with $157.5 million in the first nine months of 2023.

Global Same-Restaurant Sales

Wendy’s long-term growth opportunities include driving same-restaurant sales across all dayparts through quality differentiation, exciting menu innovation and compelling value offerings. Global same-restaurant sales increased 0.2% in the third quarter of 2024 and increased 3.0% on a two-year basis. Global same-restaurant sales increased 0.7% in the first nine months of 2024 and increased 5.9% on a two-year basis. To drive same-restaurant sales across the breakfast daypart, the Company plans to fund approximately $22.0 million of incremental breakfast advertising in 2024.

Digital

Wendy’s long-term growth opportunities include accelerating consumer-facing digital platforms and technologies to drive global systemwide sales. Over the past several years, the Company has invested significant resources to focus on consumer-facing technology, including activating mobile ordering via Wendy’s mobile app, launching the Wendy’s Rewards loyalty program in the U.S. and Canada and establishing delivery agreements with third-party vendors. The Company is also continuing to make digital investments and is partnering with key technology providers to help execute our digital, restaurant technology and enterprise technology initiatives and support our technology innovation and growth. The Company’s digital business has continued to grow and digital sales as a percent of global systemwide sales increased from approximately 12.8% during the first nine months of 2023 to approximately 17.1% during the first nine months of 2024.

New Restaurant Development

Wendy’s long-term growth opportunities include expanding the Company’s footprint across the globe. To promote new restaurant development, the Company has provided franchisees with certain incentive programs for qualifying new restaurants, in addition to our build to suit development fund. In July and September 2024, Wendy’s announced a new development incentive structure in the U.S. and Canada and select international markets, respectively, that provides for reductions in royalty and national advertising fees for qualifying new restaurants for two, three or four years of operation based on the number of restaurants committed to under the development agreement. In addition, the Company has development agreements in place with a number of franchisees that contractually obligate such franchisees to open additional Wendy’s restaurants over a specified timeframe. During the nine months ended September 29, 2024, Wendy’s added 52 net new restaurants across the system.

Organizational Redesign

In February 2023, the Board of Directors approved a plan to redesign the Company’s organizational structure to better support the execution of the Company’s long-term growth strategy by maximizing organizational efficiency and streamlining decision making (the “Organizational Redesign Plan”). As a result of the Organizational Redesign Plan, the Company held its general and administrative expense in 2023 relatively flat compared with 2022. Additionally, in January 2024, the Board of Directors announced the appointment of Kirk Tanner as the Company’s new President and Chief Executive Officer, effective February 5, 2024. Mr. Tanner succeeded Todd A. Penegor, the Company’s previous President and Chief Executive Officer, who departed from the Company in February 2024. The Company expects to incur total costs of approximately $18 million related to the Organizational Redesign Plan, including costs related to the succession of the President and Chief Executive Officer role. Of the total costs, approximately $15 million will be cash expenditures expected through 2026. Costs related to the Organizational Redesign Plan are recorded to “Reorganization and realignment costs.” During the nine months ended September 29, 2024, the Company recognized costs totaling $8.3 million, which primarily included severance and related employee costs. The Company expects to incur additional costs aggregating approximately $0.8 million, comprised primarily of share-based compensation. The Company expects costs related to the Organizational Redesign Plan to continue into 2026.

Results of Operations

The tables included throughout this Results of Operations set forth in millions the Company’s condensed consolidated results of operations for the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 and 2023.


	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Revenues:
Sales	$	230.4	$	234.7	$	(4.3)	$	693.1	$	703.4	$	(10.3)
Franchise royalty revenue and fees	153.9		149.4		4.5		458.0		444.0		14.0
Franchise rental income	59.3		57.6		1.7		177.9		173.4		4.5
Advertising funds revenue	123.1		108.9		14.2		343.2		320.1		23.1
	566.7		550.6		16.1		1,672.2		1,640.9		31.3
Costs and expenses:
Cost of sales	195.6		199.5		(3.9)		587.6		597.1		(9.5)
Franchise support and other costs	16.0		14.8		1.2		47.0		41.9		5.1
Franchise rental expense	32.2		31.9		0.3		96.4		94.9		1.5
Advertising funds expense	129.7		107.9		21.8		357.9		319.2		38.7
General and administrative	62.8		59.3		3.5		188.0		184.3		3.7
Depreciation and amortization (exclusive of amortization of cloud computing arrangements shown separately below)	37.0		34.3		2.7		110.0		101.3		8.7
Amortization of cloud computing arrangements	3.6		3.8		(0.2)		10.6		7.7		2.9
System optimization gains, net	(0.4)		(0.1)		(0.3)		(0.6)		(0.1)		(0.5)
Reorganization and realignment costs	0.4		0.6		(0.2)		8.5		8.1		0.4
Impairment of long-lived assets	0.2		0.1		0.1		2.9		0.5		2.4
Other operating income, net	(5.1)		(3.1)		(2.0)		(11.4)		(9.4)		(2.0)
	472.0		449.0		23.0		1,396.9		1,345.5		51.4
Operating profit	94.7		101.6		(6.9)		275.3		295.4		(20.1)
Interest expense, net	(31.3)		(31.0)		(0.3)		(92.8)		(93.8)		1.0
Loss on early extinguishment of debt	—		(0.3)		0.3		—		(1.6)		1.6
Investment loss, net	—		—		—		—		(10.4)		10.4
Other income, net	6.3		7.7		(1.4)		19.4		22.5		(3.1)
Income before income taxes	69.7		78.0		(8.3)		201.9		212.1		(10.2)
Provision for income taxes	(19.5)		(20.0)		0.5		(55.0)		(54.6)		(0.4)
Net income	$	50.2	$	58.0	$	(7.8)	$	146.9	$	157.5	$	(10.6)


	Third Quarter								Nine Months
	2024		% of Total Revenues		2023		% of Total Revenues		2024		% of Total Revenues		2023		% of Total Revenues
Revenues:
Sales	$	230.4	40.7	%	$	234.7	42.6	%	$	693.1	41.4	%	$	703.4	42.9	%
Franchise royalty revenue and fees:
Franchise royalty revenue	132.6		23.4	%	130.1		23.6	%	394.6		23.6	%	384.3		23.5	%
Franchise fees	21.3		3.8	%	19.3		3.5	%	63.4		3.8	%	59.7		3.6	%
Total franchise royalty revenue and fees	153.9		27.2	%	149.4		27.1	%	458.0		27.4	%	444.0		27.1	%
Franchise rental income	59.3		10.5	%	57.6		10.5	%	177.9		10.6	%	173.4		10.6	%
Advertising funds revenue	123.1		21.7	%	108.9		19.8	%	343.2		20.5	%	320.1		19.5	%
Total revenues	$	566.7	100.0	%	$	550.6	100.0	%	$	1,672.2	100.0	%	$	1,640.9	100.0	%

	Third Quarter								Nine Months
	2024		% of Sales		2023		% of Sales		2024		% of Sales		2023		% of Sales
Cost of sales:
Food and paper	$	71.7	31.1	%	$	74.5	31.7	%	$	214.4	30.9	%	$	224.1	31.9	%
Restaurant labor	73.9		32.1	%	74.9		31.9	%	223.5		32.2	%	223.8		31.8	%
Occupancy, advertising and other operating costs	50.0		21.7	%	50.1		21.4	%	149.7		21.6	%	149.2		21.2	%
Total cost of sales	$	195.6	84.9	%	$	199.5	85.0	%	$	587.6	84.8	%	$	597.1	84.9	%


	Third Quarter								Nine Months
	2024		% of Sales		2023		% of Sales		2024		% of Sales		2023		% of Sales
Company-operated restaurant margin:
U.S.	$	34.8	15.6	%	$	35.5	15.6	%	$	106.4	15.8	%	$	108.8	15.9	%
Global	34.8		15.1	%	35.2		15.0	%	105.5		15.2	%	106.3		15.1	%

The table below presents certain of the Company’s key business measures, which are defined and further discussed in the “Executive Overview” section included herein.


	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024			2023			2024			2023
Key business measures:
U.S. same-restaurant sales:
Company-operated	(1.5)		%	0.7		%	(1.1)		%	3.6		%
Franchised	0.3		%	2.3		%	0.6		%	4.8		%
Systemwide	0.2		%	2.2		%	0.5		%	4.7		%

International same-restaurant sales (a)	0.7		%	7.8		%	2.1		%	9.4		%

Global same-restaurant sales:
Company-operated	(1.6)		%	1.0		%	(1.3)		%	3.8		%
Franchised (a)	0.4		%	3.0		%	0.8		%	5.4		%
Systemwide (a)	0.2		%	2.8		%	0.7		%	5.2		%

Systemwide sales (b):
U.S. Company-operated	$	222.7		$	227.7		$	673.4		$	685.2
U.S. franchised	2,918.3			2,885.3			8,701.3			8,557.2
U.S. systemwide	3,141.0			3,113.0			9,374.7			9,242.4
International Company-operated	7.7			7.1			19.7			18.2
International franchised (a)	487.5			460.3			1,418.9			1,328.6
International systemwide (a)	495.2			467.4			1,438.6			1,346.8
Global systemwide (a)	$	3,636.2		$	3,580.4		$	10,813.3		$	10,589.2

_______________

(a)Excludes Argentina due to the impact of that country’s highly inflationary economy.

(b)During the third quarter of 2024 and 2023, global systemwide sales increased 1.8% and 4.8%, respectively, U.S. systemwide sales increased 0.9% and 3.6%, respectively, and international systemwide sales increased 7.7% and 13.6%, respectively, on a constant currency basis. During the first nine months of 2024 and 2023, global systemwide sales increased 2.3% and 7.2% respectively, U.S. systemwide sales increased 1.4% and 6.0%, respectively, and international systemwide sales increased 8.3% and 15.6%, respectively, on a constant currency basis.


	Third Quarter
	U.S. Company-operated	U.S. Franchised	International Company-operated	International Franchised	Systemwide
Restaurant count:
Restaurant count at June 30, 2024	399	5,614	12	1,236	7,261
Opened	—	22	1	41	64
Closed	—	(24)	—	(9)	(33)
Net (sold to) purchased by franchisees	(1)	1	—	—	—
Restaurant count at September 29, 2024	398	5,613	13	1,268	7,292

	Nine Months
	U.S. Company-operated	U.S. Franchised	International Company-operated	International Franchised	Systemwide

Restaurant count at December 31, 2023	403	5,627	12	1,198	7,240
Opened	2	63	1	97	163
Closed	(6)	(78)	—	(27)	(111)
Net (sold to) purchased by franchisees	(1)	1	—	—	—
Restaurant count at September 29, 2024	398	5,613	13	1,268	7,292


Sales	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Sales	$	230.4	$	234.7	$	(4.3)	$	693.1	$	703.4	$	(10.3)

The decrease in sales during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) a 1.6% and 1.3% decrease in global Company-operated same-restaurant sales of $4.1 million and $9.4 million, respectively, and (2) net closures of Company-operated restaurants of $0.3 million and $2.2 million, respectively. Company-operated same-restaurant sales decreased due to a decrease in customer count, partially offset by higher average check.


Franchise Royalty Revenue and Fees	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Franchise royalty revenue	$	132.6	$	130.1	$	2.5	$	394.6	$	384.3	$	10.3
Franchise fees	21.3		19.3		2.0		63.4		59.7		3.7
	$	153.9	$	149.4	$	4.5	$	458.0	$	444.0	$	14.0

Franchise royalty revenue during the third quarter of 2024 increased $2.5 million, of which (1) $2.1 million was due to net new restaurant development and (2) $0.7 million was due to a 0.4% increase in global franchise same-restaurant sales. Franchise royalty revenue during the first nine months of 2024 increased $10.3 million, of which (1) $6.1 million was due to net new restaurant development and (2) $3.9 million was due to a 0.8% increase in global franchise same-restaurant sales. Franchise same-restaurant sales during the third quarter and first nine months of 2024 increased due to higher average check, partially offset by a decrease in customer count.

The increase in franchise fees during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) higher fees for providing information technology services to franchisees of $0.5 million and $1.3 million, respectively, and (2) an increase in other miscellaneous franchise fees of $1.5 million and $2.4 million, respectively.


Franchise Rental Income	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Franchise rental income	$	59.3	$	57.6	$	1.7	$	177.9	$	173.4	$	4.5

The increase in franchise rental income during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) the impact of amending certain existing leases of $1.3 million and $2.8 million, respectively, (2) the impact of entering into new leases of $0.6 million and $1.6 million, respectively, and (3) an increase in executory costs of $0.3 million and $0.7 million, respectively. See Note 11 to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements contained in Item 1 herein for further information.


Advertising Funds Revenue	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Advertising funds revenue	$	123.1	$	108.9	$	14.2	$	343.2	$	320.1	$	23.1

The increase in advertising funds revenue during the third quarter of 2024 was primarily due to promotional activity of $12.0 million. During the first nine months of 2024, advertising funds revenue also increased due to (1) net new restaurant development of $4.5 million and (2) an increase in franchise same-restaurant sales in the U.S. and Canada of $2.3 million.


Cost of Sales, as a Percent of Sales	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Food and paper	31.1	%	31.7	%	(0.6)	%	30.9	%	31.9	%	(1.0)	%
Restaurant labor	32.1	%	31.9	%	0.2	%	32.2	%	31.8	%	0.4	%
Occupancy, advertising and other operating costs	21.7	%	21.4	%	0.3	%	21.6	%	21.2	%	0.4	%
	84.9	%	85.0	%	(0.1)	%	84.8	%	84.9	%	(0.1)	%

The decrease in cost of sales, as a percent of sales, during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) higher average check and (2) labor efficiencies. These impacts were partially offset by (1) an increase in restaurant labor rates and (2) a decrease in customer count.


Franchise Support and Other Costs	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Franchise support and other costs	$	16.0	$	14.8	$	1.2	$	47.0	$	41.9	$	5.1

The increase in franchise support and other costs during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to an increase in costs incurred to provide information technology and other services to franchisees.


Franchise Rental Expense	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Franchise rental expense	$	32.2	$	31.9	$	0.3	$	96.4	$	94.9	$	1.5

The increase in franchise rental expense during the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to an increase in executory costs. See Note 11 to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements contained in Item 1 herein for further information.


Advertising Funds Expense	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Advertising funds expense	$	129.7	$	107.9	$	21.8	$	357.9	$	319.2	$	38.7

On an interim basis, advertising funds expense is recognized in proportion to advertising funds revenue. The Company expects advertising funds expense to be higher than advertising funds revenue by approximately $22.0 million for 2024, which represents the Company’s plan to fund incremental breakfast advertising. The increase in advertising funds expense during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) the same factors as described above for “Advertising Funds Revenue” and (2) the recognition of the expected Company breakfast advertising spend in excess of advertising funds revenue of $6.6 million and $14.8 million, respectively.


General and Administrative	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Employee compensation and benefits	$	35.2	$	31.1	$	4.1	$	103.4	$	96.1	$	7.3
Share-based compensation	6.7		6.4		0.3		17.8		15.7		2.1
Incentive compensation	2.5		5.4		(2.9)		15.0		20.4		(5.4)
Professional fees	14.9		13.2		1.7		42.2		42.8		(0.6)
Other, net	3.5		3.2		0.3		9.6		9.3		0.3
	$	62.8	$	59.3	$	3.5	$	188.0	$	184.3	$	3.7

The increase in general and administrative expenses during the third quarter of 2024 was primarily due to (1) higher employee compensation and benefits and (2) an increase in professional fees. These increases were partially offset by a decrease in incentive compensation accruals, reflecting lower operating performance as compared to plan in 2024 versus 2023.

The increase in general and administrative expenses during the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) higher employee compensation and benefits and (2) higher share-based compensation. These increases were partially offset by a decrease in incentive compensation accruals, reflecting lower operating performance as compared to plan in 2024 versus 2023.


Depreciation and Amortization (exclusive of amortization of cloud computing arrangements shown separately below)	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Restaurants	$	23.3	$	21.9	$	1.4	$	68.8	$	63.9	$	4.9
Technology support, corporate and other	13.7		12.4		1.3		41.2		37.4		3.8
	$	37.0	$	34.3	$	2.7	$	110.0	$	101.3	$	8.7

The increase in depreciation and amortization during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) asset additions for new and remodeled restaurants and (2) depreciation and amortization for technology investments.


Amortization of Cloud Computing Arrangements	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Amortization of cloud computing arrangements	$	3.6	$	3.8	$	(0.2)	$	10.6	$	7.7	$	2.9

The increase in amortization of cloud computing arrangements during the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to amortization of assets associated with the Company’s human capital management (“HCM”) system implementation completed in the third quarter of 2023.


System Optimization Gains, Net	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
System optimization gains, net	$	(0.4)	$	(0.1)	$	(0.3)	$	(0.6)	$	(0.1)	$	(0.5)

System optimization gains, net for the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 were primarily comprised of post-closing adjustments on sales of restaurants. See Note 3 to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements contained in Item 1 herein for further information.


Reorganization and Realignment Costs	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Organizational redesign	$	0.3	$	0.6	$	(0.3)	$	8.3	$	8.0	$	0.3

Other reorganization and realignment plans	0.1		—		0.1		0.2		0.1		0.1
	$	0.4	$	0.6	$	(0.2)	$	8.5	$	8.1	$	0.4

During the first nine months of 2024 and 2023, the Company recognized costs under the Organizational Redesign Plan of $8.3 million and $8.0 million, respectively, which primarily included severance and related employee costs. See Note 4 to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements contained in Item 1 herein for further information on the Organizational Redesign Plan.

Costs incurred under the Company’s other reorganization and realignment plans were not material during the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023. The Company does not expect to incur any material additional costs under these plans.


Impairment of Long-Lived Assets	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Impairment of long-lived assets	$	0.2	$	0.1	$	0.1	$	2.9	$	0.5	$	2.4

The increase in impairment of long-lived assets during the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to higher impairment charges as a result of the deterioration in operating performance of certain Company-operated restaurants.


Other Operating Income, Net	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Lease buyout	$	1.7	$	(0.2)	$	1.9	$	2.2	$	(0.2)	$	2.4
Equity in earnings in joint venture, net	3.1		3.0		0.1		8.6		8.0		0.6
Other, net	0.3		0.3		—		0.6		1.6		(1.0)
	$	5.1	$	3.1	$	2.0	$	11.4	$	9.4	$	2.0

The increase in other operating income during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to an increase in lease buyout activity.


Interest Expense, Net	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Interest expense, net	$	31.3	$	31.0	$	0.3	$	92.8	$	93.8	$	(1.0)

The decrease in interest expense, net during the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to lower outstanding long-term debt.


Loss on Early Extinguishment of Debt	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Loss on early extinguishment of debt	$	—	$	0.3	$	(0.3)	$	—	$	1.6	$	(1.6)

During the first nine months of 2023, the Company incurred a loss on early extinguishment of debt of $1.6 million related to the repurchase of $39.3 million in principal of the Company’s 7% debentures.


Investment Loss, Net	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Investment loss, net	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	10.4	$	(10.4)

During the first nine months of 2023, the Company recorded a loss of $10.4 million due to impairment charges for the difference between the estimated fair value and the carrying value of an investment in equity securities.


Other Income, Net	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Other income, net	$	6.3	$	7.7	$	(1.4)	$	19.4	$	22.5	$	(3.1)

The decrease in other income, net during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to a decrease in interest income, reflecting lower balances of cash equivalents.


Provision for Income Taxes	Third Quarter									Nine Months
	2024			2023			Change			2024			2023			Change
Income before income taxes	$	69.7		$	78.0		$	(8.3)		$	201.9		$	212.1		$	(10.2)
Provision for income taxes	(19.5)			(20.0)			0.5			(55.0)			(54.6)			(0.4)
Effective tax rate on income	27.9		%	25.5		%	2.4		%	27.3		%	25.8		%	1.5		%

The effective tax rates for the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 and 2023 were impacted by variations in income before income taxes, adjusted for recurring items such as non-deductible expenses and state income taxes, as well as non-recurring discrete items. The increase in the effective tax rate for the third quarter of 2024 was primarily due to (1) an increase in the tax effects of our foreign operations, (2) a decrease in the benefit from share-based compensation and (3) an increase in state income taxes, including discrete changes to state deferred income taxes. The increase in the effective tax rate for the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) an increase in the tax effects of our foreign operations and (2) a decrease in the benefit from share-based compensation. These changes were partially offset by a one-time adjustment to our foreign deferred income taxes related to prior periods.

Numerous countries have enacted the Organization of Economic Corporation and Development’s framework on a global minimum tax (referred to as “Pillar 2”), with the earliest effective date for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2023. While the Company does not expect this enactment will have a material impact on the condensed consolidated financial statements, we will continue to evaluate and monitor as additional guidance and clarification becomes available.

Segment Information

See Note 16 to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements contained in Item 1 herein for further information regarding the Company’s segments.

Wendy’s U.S.


	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Sales	$	222.7	$	227.7	$	(5.0)	$	673.4	$	685.2	$	(11.8)
Franchise royalty revenue	114.4		112.7		1.7		341.2		334.0		7.2
Franchise fees	17.9		17.0		0.9		53.5		51.8		1.7
Advertising fund revenue	113.7		99.8		13.9		316.1		296.0		20.1
Total revenues	$	468.7	$	457.2	$	11.5	$	1,384.2	$	1,367.0	$	17.2
Segment profit	$	129.8	$	134.9	$	(5.1)	$	392.3	$	403.1	$	(10.8)

The increase in Wendy’s U.S. revenues during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) higher advertising fund revenue and (2) net new franchise restaurant development. During the first nine months of 2024, revenues also increased due to higher franchise same-restaurant sales. Franchise same-restaurant sales increased during the first nine months of 2024 primarily due to higher average check, partially offset by a decrease in customer count. These increases were partially offset by a decrease in Company-operated sales driven by the same factors as described above for “Sales.”

The decrease in Wendy’s U.S. segment profit during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) an increase in the Company’s funding of incremental advertising and (2) a decrease in Company-operated sales. During the first nine months of 2024, segment profit also decreased due to higher franchise support and other costs. These changes were partially offset by an increase in franchise royalty revenue and fees.

Wendy’s International


	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Sales	$	7.7	$	7.1	$	0.6	$	19.7	$	18.2	$	1.5
Franchise royalty revenue	18.2		17.4		0.8		53.4		50.4		3.0
Franchise fees	2.3		1.6		0.7		6.6		4.5		2.1
Advertising fund revenue	9.4		9.1		0.3		27.1		24.1		3.0
Total revenues	$	37.6	$	35.2	$	2.4	$	106.8	$	97.2	$	9.6
Segment profit	$	11.0	$	10.8	$	0.2	$	32.4	$	26.8	$	5.6

The increase in Wendy’s International revenues during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) net new restaurant development and (2) an increase in franchise same-restaurant sales. Franchise same-restaurant sales increased during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 due to higher average check, partially offset by a decrease in customer count.

The increase in Wendy’s International segment profit during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to higher revenues. This increase was partially offset by higher advertising fund expenses.

Global Real Estate & Development


	Third Quarter						Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change		2024		2023		Change
Franchise fees	$	1.1	$	0.6	$	0.5	$	3.3	$	3.4	$	(0.1)
Franchise rental income	59.3		57.5		1.8		178.0		173.4		4.6
Total revenues	$	60.4	$	58.1	$	2.3	$	181.3	$	176.8	$	4.5
Segment profit	$	27.2	$	24.4	$	2.8	$	79.5	$	76.0	$	3.5

The increase in Global Real Estate & Development revenues during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to higher franchise rental income as a result of (1) amending certain existing leases, (2) entering into new leases and (3) an increase executory costs.

The increase in Global Real Estate & Development segment profit during the third quarter and the first nine months of 2024 was primarily due to (1) higher revenues and (2) an increase in lease buyout activity. These increases were partially offset by higher franchise rental expense driven by the same factors as described above for “Franchise Rental Expense.”

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Cash Flows

Our primary sources of liquidity and capital resources are cash flows from operations and borrowings under our securitized financing facility. Our principal uses of cash are operating expenses, capital expenditures, repurchases of common stock and dividends to stockholders.

Our anticipated cash requirements for the remainder of 2024, exclusive of operating cash flow requirements, consist principally of:

•capital expenditures of approximately $38.0 million to $48.0 million, resulting in total anticipated cash capital expenditures for the year of approximately $90.0 million to $100.0 million;

•cash dividends aggregating approximately $51.0 million as discussed below in “Dividends;” and

•stock repurchases under the Company’s January 2023 Authorization as discussed below in “Stock Repurchases.”

Based on current levels of operations, the Company expects that available cash and cash flows from operations will provide sufficient liquidity to meet operating cash requirements for the next 12 months.

We currently believe we have the ability to pursue additional sources of liquidity if needed or desired to fund operating cash requirements or for other purposes. However, there can be no assurance that additional liquidity will be readily available or available on terms acceptable to us.

The table below summarizes our cash flows from operating, investing and financing activities for the first nine months of 2024 and 2023:


	Nine Months
	2024		2023		Change
Net cash provided by (used in):
Operating activities	$	286.7	$	269.5	$	17.2
Investing activities	(68.8)		(55.5)		(13.3)
Financing activities	(250.6)		(373.2)		122.6
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash	(1.6)		0.3		(1.9)
Net decrease in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	$	(34.3)	$	(158.9)	$	124.6

Operating Activities

Cash provided by operating activities consists primarily of net income, adjusted for non-cash expenses such as depreciation and amortization, deferred income tax and share-based compensation, and the net change in operating assets and liabilities. Cash provided by operating activities was $286.7 million and $269.5 million in the first nine months of 2024 and 2023, respectively. The change was primarily due to (1) a decrease in cash paid for cloud computing arrangements and (2) the timing of payments for marketing expenses of the national advertising funds. These changes were partially offset by lower net income, adjusted for non-cash expenses.

Investing Activities

Cash used in investing activities was $68.8 million and $55.5 million in the first nine months of 2024 and 2023, respectively. The change was primarily due to an increase in expenditures associated with the Company’s franchise development fund of $19.1 million, partially offset by (1) a decrease in capital expenditures of $3.3 million and (2) an increase in proceeds from dispositions of $2.9 million.

Financing Activities

Cash used in financing activities was $250.6 million and $373.2 million in the first nine months of 2024 and 2023, respectively. The change was primarily due to (1) a decrease in repurchases of the Company’s common stock of $82.4 million and (2) a decrease in repayments of long-term debt of $39.3 million, reflecting the impact of repurchases of the Company’s 7% debentures during the first nine months of 2023.

Long-Term Debt, Including Current Portion

We may from time to time seek to repurchase portions of our outstanding long-term debt, including our 7% debentures and/or our senior secured notes, through open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions or otherwise. No debt repurchases were made during the nine months ended September 29, 2024. Future repurchases, if any, will depend on prevailing market conditions, our liquidity requirements, contractual restrictions and other factors. Whether or not to repurchase any debt and the size and timing of any such repurchases will be determined at our discretion.

There were no material changes to the Company’s debt obligations since December 31, 2023. The Company was in compliance with its debt covenants as of September 29, 2024.

Dividends

On March 15, 2024, June 17, 2024, and September 17, 2024, the Company paid quarterly cash dividends per share of $.25, aggregating $153.4 million. On October 31, 2024, the Company announced a dividend of $.25 per share to be paid on December 16, 2024 to stockholders of record as of December 2, 2024. As a result, the Company expects that its total cash requirement for the fourth quarter of 2024 will be approximately $51.0 million based on the number of shares of its common stock outstanding at October 24, 2024. The Company currently intends to continue to declare and pay quarterly cash dividends; however, there can be no assurance that any additional quarterly dividends will be declared or paid or of the amount or timing of such dividends, if any.

Stock Repurchases

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”). During the nine months ended September 29, 2024, the Company repurchased 3.4 million shares under the January 2023 Authorization with an aggregate purchase price of $59.6 million, of which $0.2 million was accrued as of September 29, 2024, and excluding excise tax and commissions. As of September 29, 2024, the Company had $250.4 million of availability remaining under the January 2023 Authorization. Subsequent to September 29, 2024 through October 24, 2024, the Company repurchased 0.2 million shares under the January 2023 Authorization with an aggregate purchase price of $2.7 million, excluding applicable excise tax and commissions.

General Inflation, Commodities and Changing Prices

Inflationary pressures on labor directly impacted our consolidated results of operations during the nine months ended September 29, 2024, and we expect this to continue throughout the remainder of 2024. We attempt to manage any inflationary costs and commodity price increases through selective menu price increases and product mix. Delays in implementing such menu price increases and competitive pressures may limit our ability to recover such cost increases in the future. Inherent volatility experienced in certain commodity markets, such as those for beef, chicken, pork, cheese and grains, could have a significant effect on our results of operations and may have an adverse effect on us in the future. The extent of any impact will depend on our ability to manage such volatility through product mix and selective menu price increases.

Seasonality

Wendy’s restaurant operations are moderately seasonal. Wendy’s average restaurant sales are normally higher during the summer months than during the winter months. Because our business is moderately seasonal, results for a particular quarter are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be achieved for any other quarter or for the full fiscal year.

Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk.

As of September 29, 2024 there were no material changes from the information contained in the Company’s Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023.

Item 4. Controls and Procedures.

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

The management of the Company, under the supervision and with the participation of the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, evaluated the effectiveness of the design and operation of its disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) or 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”)) as of September 29, 2024. Based on such evaluations, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that as of September 29, 2024, the disclosure controls and procedures of the Company were effective at a reasonable assurance level in (1) recording, processing, summarizing and reporting, on a timely basis, information required to be disclosed by the Company in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act and (2) ensuring that information required to be disclosed by the Company in such reports is accumulated and communicated to management, including the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

There were no changes in the internal control over financial reporting of the Company during the third quarter of 2024 that materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, its internal control over financial reporting.

Inherent Limitations on Effectiveness of Controls

There are inherent limitations in the effectiveness of any control system, including the potential for human error and the possible circumvention or overriding of controls and procedures. Additionally, judgments in decision-making can be faulty and breakdowns can occur because of a simple error or mistake. An effective control system can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the control objectives of the system are adequately met. Accordingly, the management of the Company, including its Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, does not expect that the control system can prevent or detect all error or fraud. Finally, projections of any evaluation or assessment of effectiveness of a control system to future periods are subject to the risks that, over time, controls may become inadequate because of changes in an entity’s operating environment or deterioration in the degree of compliance with policies or procedures.

PART II. OTHER INFORMATION

Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements and Projections

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and oral statements made from time to time by representatives of the Company may contain or incorporate by reference certain statements that are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the “Reform Act”). Generally, forward-looking statements include the words “may,” “believes,” “plans,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “estimate,” “goal,” “upcoming,” “outlook,” “guidance” or the negation thereof, or similar expressions. In addition, all statements that address future operating, financial or business performance, strategies or initiatives, future efficiencies or savings, anticipated costs or charges, future capitalization, anticipated impacts of recent or pending investments or transactions and statements expressing general views about future results or brand health are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Reform Act. Forward-looking statements are based on our expectations at the time such statements are made, speak only as of the dates they are made and are susceptible to a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors. For all of our forward-looking statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Reform Act. Our actual results, performance and achievements may differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by our forward-looking statements. Many important factors could affect our future results and cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by our forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to, the following:

•the impact of competition or poor customer experiences at Wendy’s restaurants;

•adverse economic conditions or disruptions, including in regions with a high concentration of Wendy’s restaurants;

•changes in discretionary consumer spending and consumer tastes and preferences;

•the disruption to our business from COVID-19 and its impact on our results of operations, financial condition and prospects;

•impacts to our corporate reputation or the value and perception of our brand;

•the effectiveness of our marketing and advertising programs and new product development;

•our ability to manage the impact of social media;

•our ability to protect our intellectual property;

•food safety events or health concerns involving our products;

•our ability to deliver accelerated global sales growth and achieve or maintain market share across our dayparts;

•our ability to achieve our growth strategy through new restaurant development and our Image Activation program;

•our ability to effectively manage the acquisition and disposition of restaurants or successfully implement other strategic initiatives;

•risks associated with leasing and owning significant amounts of real estate, including environmental matters;

•risks associated with our international operations, including our ability to execute our international growth strategy;

•changes in commodity and other operating costs;

•shortages or interruptions in the supply or distribution of our products and other risks associated with our independent supply chain purchasing co-op;

•the impact of increased labor costs or labor shortages;

•the continued succession and retention of key personnel and the effectiveness of our leadership and organizational structure;

•risks associated with our digital commerce strategy, platforms and technologies, including our ability to adapt to changes in industry trends and consumer preferences;

•our dependence on computer systems and information technology, including risks associated with the failure or interruption of our systems or technology or the occurrence of cyber incidents or deficiencies;

•risks associated with our securitized financing facility and other debt agreements, including compliance with operational and financial covenants, restrictions on our ability to raise additional capital, the impact of our overall debt levels and our ability to generate sufficient cash flow to meet our debt service obligations and operate our business;

•risks associated with our capital allocation policy, including the amount and timing of equity and debt repurchases and dividend payments;

•risks associated with complaints and litigation, compliance with legal and regulatory requirements and an increased focus on environmental, social and governance issues;

•risks associated with the availability and cost of insurance, changes in accounting standards, the recognition of impairment or other charges, changes in tax rates or tax laws and fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates;

•conditions beyond our control, such as adverse weather conditions, natural disasters, hostilities, social unrest, health epidemics or pandemics or other catastrophic events; and

•other risks and uncertainties affecting us and our subsidiaries referred to in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on February 26, 2024 (see especially “Item 1A. Risk Factors” and “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations”) and in our other current and periodic filings with the SEC.

In addition to the factors described above, there are risks associated with our predominantly franchised business model that could impact our results, performance and achievements. Such risks include our ability to identify, attract and retain experienced and qualified franchisees, our ability to effectively manage the transfer of restaurants between and among franchisees, the business and financial health of franchisees, the ability of franchisees to meet their royalty, advertising, development, reimaging and other commitments, participation by franchisees in brand strategies and the fact that franchisees are independent third parties that own, operate and are responsible for overseeing the operations of their restaurants. Our predominantly franchised business model may also impact the ability of the Wendy’s system to effectively respond and adapt to market changes.

All future written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to us or any person acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to above. New risks and uncertainties arise from time to time, and factors that we currently deem immaterial may become material, and it is impossible for us to predict these events or how they may affect us. We assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements after the date of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q as a result of new information, future events or developments, except as required by federal securities laws, although we may do so from time to time. We do not endorse any projections regarding future performance that may be made by third parties.

Item 1. Legal Proceedings.

The Company is involved in litigation and claims incidental to our business. We provide accruals for such litigation and claims when we determine it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the loss is reasonably estimable. The Company believes it has adequate accruals for all of its legal and environmental matters. We cannot estimate the aggregate possible range of loss for our existing litigation and claims due to various reasons, including, but not limited to, many proceedings being in preliminary stages, with various motions either yet to be submitted or pending, discovery yet to occur, and significant factual matters unresolved. In addition, most cases seek an indeterminate amount of damages and many involve multiple parties. Predicting the outcomes of settlement discussions or judicial or arbitral decisions is thus inherently difficult and future developments could cause these actions or claims, individually or in aggregate, to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows of a particular reporting period.

Item 1A. Risk Factors.

In addition to the information contained in this report, you should carefully consider the risk factors disclosed in our Form 10-K, which could materially affect our business, financial condition or future results. Except as described elsewhere in this report, there have been no material changes from the risk factors previously disclosed in our Form 10-K.

Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds.

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 third quarter of 2024:

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 Plans	Approximate Dollar Value of Shares that May Yet Be Purchased Under the Plans (2)
July 1, 2024 through August 4, 2024	929,674	$16.76	929,002	$260,000,026
August 5, 2024 through September 1, 2024	427,124	$16.98	295,114	$255,002,053
September 2, 2024 through September 29, 2024	269,917	$17.31	268,290	$250,362,507
Total	1,626,715	$16.91	1,492,406	$250,362,507

(1)Includes 134,309 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.

Subsequent to September 29, 2024 through October 24, 2024, the Company repurchased 0.2 million shares under the January 2023 Authorization with an aggregate purchase price of $2.7 million, excluding applicable excise tax and commissions.

Item 6. Exhibits.


EXHIBIT NO.			DESCRIPTION

10.1			Employment Letter between The Wend y ’s Company and John Min dated as of September 4, 202 4 .* **
31.1			Certification of the Chief Executive Officer of The Wendy’s Company, pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.*
31.2			Certification of the Chief Financial Officer of The Wendy’s Company, pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.*
32.1			Certifications of the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.*
101			The following financial information from The Wendy’s Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 29, 2024 formatted in Inline eXtensible Business Reporting Language: (i) the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets, (ii) the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations, (iii) the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income, (iv) the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity, (v) the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows, and (vi) Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.
104			The cover page from The Wendy’s Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 29, 2024, formatted in Inline XBRL and contained in Exhibit 101.

_______________


*			Filed herewith.
**			Identifies a management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.


			THE WENDY’S COMPANY (Registrant)
Date: October 31, 2024			By: /s/ Gunther Plosch
			Gunther Plosch
			Chief Financial Officer
			(On behalf of the registrant)

Date: October 31, 2024			By: /s/ Suzanne M. Thuerk
			Suzanne M. Thuerk
			Chief Accounting Officer
			(Principal Accounting Officer)

EXHIBIT 10.1

September 4, 2024

Hand Delivered:

Dear John,

The Wendy’s Company is delighted to confirm the offer of employment for the position of Chief Legal Officer and Secretary reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer. We believe you will contribute to the Company’s overall success and trust that Wendy’s will provide you with the career environment and opportunities you seek. We look forward to you joining the team - your start date is to be determined but projected to be September 16, 2024.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS. The following is a summary of your compensation and benefits, but it does not contain all the details. The complete understanding between the Company and you regarding your compensation and benefits is governed by legal plan documents and Company policies. If there is a discrepancy between the information in this letter and the legal plan documents/Company policies, the legal plan documents/Company policies will prevail. All forms of compensation referenced in this letter are subject to all applicable deductions and withholdings.

1.Base Salary. Your starting base annualized salary will be $600,000 paid on a bi-weekly basis.

2.Annual Incentive. You will be eligible to receive an incentive under the terms and conditions of the incentive plan provided to similarly situated officers of the Company, which currently provides for a target bonus of 85% of your annual base salary, provided performance measures set by the Company are achieved. Any bonus to which you are entitled in your initial year of employment will be prorated based on the number of full calendar months you are employed from your start date.

3.Benefits. You shall be entitled to participate in any retirement, fringe benefit, or welfare benefit plan of the Company on the same terms as provided to similarly situated officers of the Company, including any plan providing medical, prescription, dental, vision, disability, life, accidental death, and travel accident insurance benefits that the Company may adopt for the benefit of similarly situated officers, in accordance with the terms of such plan. You will be eligible to participate in benefit programs after 30 days of service.

4.Executive Physical. Wendy’s wants to ensure that its leaders are provided with comprehensive health exams to help them maintain their health and peak performance. Wendy’s provides all officers of the company with the opportunity to receive an Executive Physical and will cover the

Page 1

cost annually for an executive physical exam completed through the Company’s preferred partner. Additional details will be provided after hire.

5.Vacation. You will be eligible to take up to four weeks of vacation per year.

6.Subsequent Equity Awards. Commencing in 2025, you will be eligible to receive awards under the terms and conditions of the Company’s annual long-term incentive award program in effect for other similarly situated executives of the Company, subject to Subcommittee approval. For 2025, the target value of your annual equity award will be $1,100,000.

7.One-Time Equity Award. You will be eligible to receive a one-time award of restricted stock units with an award value of $250,000 upon commencement of your active employment. The restricted stock unit award will vest in full on the third anniversary of the grant date.

8.Relocation Assistance. You will be based out of the Restaurant Support Center in Dublin, OH. To support your move to the area, you are eligible for relocation assistance, and may elect to have your relocation expenses: (i) paid in a lump sum in the amount of $100,000, less any and all applicable taxes and payable within the first 30 days of your employment, or (ii) covered by the Company through its third party service provider, Cartus Corporation, subject to the provisions outlined in the Relocation 2 – Homeowners policy, a copy of which has been provided to you.

9.Severance. The Company’s Executive Severance Pay Policy provides for certain pay and benefits in the event the Company terminates your employment without cause or within twelve (12) months following a change in control. Such pay and benefits would be provided in exchange for your execution of a Severance Agreement and Release in the form approved by the Company, including a general release of any and all claims concerning your employment and termination in favor of the Company. You will not be entitled to severance in the event the Company terminates your employment for cause or in the event you voluntarily resign or terminate your employment with the Company.

In accepting this offer, you agree to the attached Non-Compete and Confidentiality Addendum. Please note that this offer is contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

We look forward to you becoming a part of the Wendy’s team and are confident that you can have a long-term, positive impact on our business. Nonetheless, please understand that Wendy’s is an at-will employer. That means that either you or Wendy’s are free to end the employment relationship at any time, with or without notice or cause. This offer letter, including all attachments, is governed by Ohio law, without regard to conflict of law principles, and will be binding up and enforceable by the Company’s successors and assigns, if applicable.

Please review the information contained in this letter and attachments, as it represents the complete understanding between you and the Company concerning the subject matter of this letter and supersedes any prior or contemporaneous offers, term sheets, agreements, understandings or communications between you and the Company (oral or written). You acknowledge that in accepting this offer you have not relied on any representation which is not set forth herein. Once you have had an opportunity to consider this letter, and provided you wish to accept the position on the terms outlined, please return an executed copy of this letter to me.

Page 2

I’m excited about the prospect of working with you on the Wendy’s leadership team. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Yours truly,

/s/ Coley O’Brien

Coley O’Brien

Chief People Officer

THE WENDY'S COMPANY

Page 3

John Min

CHIEF LEGAL OFFICER & SECRETARY


PROVISION	TERM	COMMENTS
Base Salary	$600,000/year	Reviewed annually.
Annual Incentive	Target annual bonus percentage equal to 85% of base salary	Company performance assessed for each fiscal year relative to pre-established performance measures.
Annual Equity Awards	2025 Target Equity Award Value of $1,100,000	Commencing in 2025, during your employment you are eligible to be granted awards under the Wendy’s annual long-term award program in effect for other executives of Wendy’s.
One-Time Equity Award	Value of $250,000	You are eligible to receive a one-time award of restricted stock units, subject to Subcommittee approval, with an award value of $250,000 upon commencement of your active employment. The restricted stock unit award will vest in full on the third anniversary of the grant.
Benefits		Benefits as are generally made available to other senior executives of Wendy’s, including participation in Wendy’s health/medical and insurance programs
Vacation	Four weeks per year	Prorated for first calendar year of employment

Page 4

NON-COMPETE AND CONFIDENTIALITY ADDENDUM

TO OFFER LETTER OF SEPTEMBER 4, 2024

This Addendum is a part of the terms of your employment with the Company. By accepting your offer letter, you are also accepting the terms of this Addendum.

CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION. You agree that you will not at any time during your employment and anytime thereafter, divulge, furnish, or make known or accessible to, or use for the benefit of anyone other than Wendy’s, its subsidiaries and affiliates and their respective officers, directors and employee, any information of a confidential nature relating in any way to the business of Wendy’s or its subsidiaries or affiliates, or any of their respective franchisees, suppliers or distributors. You further agree that you are not subject to any agreement that would restrict you from performing services to Wendy’s and that you will not disclose to Wendy’s or use on its behalf, any confidential information or material that is the property of a former employer or third party.

NONCOMPETE/NONSOLICITATION/EMPLOYEE NO-HIRE. You acknowledge that you will be involved, at the highest level, in the development, implementation, and management of Wendy’s business strategies and plans, including those which involve Wendy’s finances, marketing and other operations, and acquisitions and, as a result, you will have access to Wendy’s most valuable trade secrets and proprietary information. By virtue of your unique and sensitive position, your employment by a competitor of Wendy’s represents a material unfair competitive danger to Wendy’s and the use of your knowledge and information about Wendy’s business, strategies and plans can and would constitute a competitive advantage over Wendy’s. You further acknowledge that the provisions of this section are reasonable and necessary to protect Wendy’s legitimate business interests.

You agree that during your employment with Wendy’s and either (x) in the event you resign or your employment with Wendy’s is terminated “without cause”, for a period of eighteen (18) months following such termination, or (y) in the event your employment with Wendy’s is terminated for cause, for a period of twelve (12) months following such termination:

(i) in any state or territory of the United States (and the District of Columbia) or any country where Wendy’s maintains restaurants, you will not engage or be engaged in any capacity, “directly or indirectly” (as defined below), except as a passive investor owning less than a two percent (2%) interest in a publicly held company, in any business or entity that is competitive with the business of Wendy’s or its affiliates. This restriction includes any business engaged in drive through or food service restaurant business where hamburgers, chicken sandwiches or entree salads are predominant products (15% or more, individually or in the aggregate, of food products not including beverages). Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, this restriction shall not prohibit you from accepting employment, operating or otherwise becoming associated with a franchisee of Wendy’s, any of its affiliates or any subsidiary of the foregoing, but only in connection with activities associated with the operation of such a franchise or activities that otherwise are not encompassed by the restrictions of this paragraph, subject to any confidentiality obligations contained herein;

Page 5

(ii) you will not, directly or indirectly, without Wendy’s prior written consent, hire or cause to be hired, solicit or encourage to cease to work with Wendy’s or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates, any person who is at the time of such activity, or who was within the six (6) month period preceding such activity, an employee of Wendy’s or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates at the level of director or any more senior level or a consultant under contract with Wendy’s or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates and whose primary client is such entity or entities; and

(iii) you will not, directly or indirectly, solicit, encourage or cause any franchisee or supplier of Wendy’s or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates to cease doing business with Wendy’s or subsidiary or affiliate, or to reduce the amount of business such franchisee or supplier does with Wendy’s or such subsidiary or affiliate.

For purposes of this section, “directly or indirectly” means in your individual capacity for your own benefit or as a shareholder, lender, partner, member or other principal, officer, director, employee, agent or consultant of or to any individual, corporation, partnership, limited liability company, trust, association or any other entity whatsoever; provided, however, that you may own stock in Wendy’s and may operate, directly or indirectly, Wendy’s restaurants as a franchisee without violating sections (i) or (iii).

If any competent authority having jurisdiction over this section determines that any of the provisions is unenforceable because of the duration or geographical scope of such provision, such competent authority shall have the power to reduce the duration or scope, as the case may be, of such provision and, in its reduced form, such provision shall then be enforceable. The obligations in this Addendum are intended to be read consistent with any applicable professional conduct rules and should be interpreted in that manner. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this Addendum (and the agreement into which it is incorporated) shall not affect or limit the validity and enforceability of the other provisions hereof. The obligations in this Addendum are intended to be read consistent with any applicable professional conduct rules and should be interpreted in that manner. In the event of your breach of your obligations under the post-employment restrictive covenants, then the post-employment restricted period shall be tolled and extended during the length of such breach, to the extent permitted by law.

Page 6

EXHIBIT 31.1

CERTIFICATION OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

OF THE WENDY’S COMPANY, PURSUANT TO SECTION 302

OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002

I, Kirk Tanner, certify that:

1.I have reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-Q of The Wendy’s Company;

2.Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;

3.Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

4.The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and have:

(a)Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

(b)Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

(c)Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and

(d)Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

5.The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

(a)All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and

(b)Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

Date: October 31, 2024

/s/ Kirk Tanner

Kirk Tanner

President and Chief Executive Officer

EXHIBIT 31.2

CERTIFICATION OF THE CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

OF THE WENDY’S COMPANY, PURSUANT TO SECTION 302

OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002

I, Gunther Plosch, certify that:

1.I have reviewed this quarterly report on Form 10-Q of The Wendy’s Company;

(b)Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

Date: October 31, 2024

/s/ Gunther Plosch

Gunther Plosch

Chief Financial Officer

EXHIBIT 32.1

CERTIFICATIONS OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER AND CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

PURSUANT TO 18 U.S.C. SECTION 1350, AS ADOPTED PURSUANT TO

SECTION 906 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002

Pursuant to Section 1350 of Chapter 63 of Title 18 of the United States Code, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, each of the undersigned officers of The Wendy’s Company, a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), does hereby certify, to the best of such officer’s knowledge, that in connection with the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of the Company for the quarter ended September 29, 2024 (the “Form 10-Q”):

1.the Form 10-Q fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; and

2.the information contained in the Form 10-Q fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company.

Date: October 31, 2024

/s/ Kirk Tanner

Kirk Tanner

President and Chief Executive Officer

Date: October 31, 2024

/s/ Gunther Plosch

Gunther Plosch

Chief Financial Officer

Document and Entity Information - shares	9 Months Ended
Document and Entity Information - shares	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 24, 2024
Document and Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-Q
Document Quarterly Report	true
Document Period End Date	Sep. 29, 2024
Document Transition Report	false
Entity File Number	1-2207
Entity Registrant Name	THE WENDY’S COMPANY
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	DE
Entity Tax Identification Number	38-0471180
Entity Address, Address Line One	One Dave Thomas Blvd.
Entity Address, City or Town	Dublin
Entity Address, State or Province	OH
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	43017
City Area Code	614
Local Phone Number	764-3100
Title of 12(b) Security	Common Stock, $.10 par value
Trading Symbol	WEN
Security Exchange Name	NASDAQ
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Interactive Data Current	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Small Business	false
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Shell Company	false
Entity Central Index Key	0000030697
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-29
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2024
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		203,845,085

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 482,224	$ 516,037
Restricted cash	35,180	35,848
Accounts and notes receivable, net	111,413	121,683
Inventories	6,251	6,690
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	32,816	39,640
Advertising funds restricted assets	115,329	117,755
Total current assets	783,213	837,653
Properties	894,200	891,080
Finance lease assets	235,780	228,936
Operating lease assets	686,286	705,615
Goodwill	773,187	773,727
Other intangible assets	1,199,413	1,219,129
Investments	31,758	34,445
Net investment in sales-type and direct financing leases	285,711	313,664
Other assets	183,675	178,577
Total assets	5,073,223	5,182,826
Current liabilities:
Current portion of long-term debt	29,250	29,250
Current portion of finance lease liabilities	21,952	20,250
Current portion of operating lease liabilities	50,578	49,353
Accounts payable	29,047	27,370
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities	128,734	135,149
Advertising funds restricted liabilities	113,511	120,558
Total current liabilities	373,072	381,930
Long-term debt	2,716,486	2,732,814
Long-term finance lease liabilities	567,242	568,767
Long-term operating lease liabilities	712,570	739,340
Deferred income taxes	270,089	270,353
Deferred franchise fees	89,300	90,132
Other liabilities	84,611	89,711
Total liabilities	4,813,370	4,873,047
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders’ equity:
Common stock, $0.10 par value; 1,500,000 shares authorized; 470,424 shares issued; 203,089 and 205,397 shares outstanding, respectively	47,042	47,042
Additional paid-in capital	2,967,927	2,960,035
Retained earnings	403,259	409,863
Common stock held in treasury, at cost; 267,335 and 265,027 shares, respectively	(3,097,785)	(3,048,786)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(60,590)	(58,375)
Total stockholders’ equity	259,853	309,779
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$ 5,073,223	$ 5,182,826
Common Stock, Par Value	$ 0.10	$ 0.10
Common Stock, Shares Authorized	1,500,000	1,500,000
Common Stock, Shares Issued	470,424	470,424
Common Stock, Shares Outstanding	203,089	205,397
Treasury Stock, Shares	267,335	265,027

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Revenues:
Revenues	$ 566,739	$ 550,555	$ 1,672,219	$ 1,640,927
Costs and expenses:
Cost of sales	195,638	199,522	587,637	597,068
Franchise support and other costs	16,047	14,806	47,011	41,853
Franchise Rental Expense	32,237	31,876	96,405	94,901
Advertising funds expense	129,732	107,895	357,923	319,174
General and administrative	62,794	59,288	188,047	184,306
Depreciation and amortization (exclusive of amortization of cloud computing arrangements shown separately below)	36,996	34,288	110,006	101,258
Amortization of cloud computing arrangements	3,576	3,844	10,637	7,692
System optimization gains, net	(420)	(120)	(573)	(119)
Reorganization and realignment costs	354	611	8,479	8,100
Impairment of long-lived assets	178	59	2,873	513
Other operating income, net	(5,068)	(3,117)	(11,564)	(9,174)
Costs and expenses	472,064	448,952	1,396,881	1,345,572
Operating profit	94,675	101,603	275,338	295,355
Interest expense, net	(31,270)	(30,957)	(92,800)	(93,798)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt	0	(319)	0	(1,585)
Investment income (loss), net	0	0	11	(10,389)
Other income, net	6,246	7,637	19,382	22,546
Income before income taxes	69,651	77,964	201,931	212,129
Provision for income taxes	(19,427)	(19,915)	(55,071)	(54,627)
Net income	$ 50,224	$ 58,049	$ 146,860	$ 157,502
Net income per share:
Basic	$ 0.25	$ 0.28	$ 0.72	$ 0.75
Diluted	$ 0.25	$ 0.28	$ 0.71	$ 0.74
Sales
Revenues:
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	$ 230,403	$ 234,721	$ 693,081	$ 703,358
Franchise royalty revenue and fees
Revenues:
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	153,868	149,345	458,038	444,070
Franchise rental income
Revenues:
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	59,314	57,567	177,938	173,407
Advertising funds revenue
Revenues:
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	$ 123,154	$ 108,922	$ 343,162	$ 320,092

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Net income	$ 50,224	$ 58,049	$ 146,860	$ 157,502
Other comprehensive income (loss):
Foreign currency translation adjustment	4,382	(4,533)	(2,215)	574
Other comprehensive income (loss)	4,382	(4,533)	(2,215)	574
Comprehensive income	$ 54,606	$ 53,516	$ 144,645	$ 158,076

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Total	Common Stock	Additional Paid-In Capital	Retained Earnings	Common Stock Held in Treasury	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss
Stockholders' Equity, beginning of period at Jan. 01, 2023	$ 465,720	$ 47,042	$ 2,937,885	$ 414,749	$ (2,869,780)	$ (64,176)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Net income	39,821	0	0	39,821	0	0
Other comprehensive income (loss)	158	0	0	0	0	158
Cash dividends	(53,103)	0	0	(53,103)	0	0
Repurchases of common stock	(38,810)	0	0	0	(38,810)	0
Share-based compensation	4,609	0	4,609	0	0	0
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	2,616	0	808	0	1,808	0
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	(1,544)	0	(2,222)	0	678	0
Other	90	0	58	(22)	54	0
Stockholders' Equity, end of period at Apr. 02, 2023	419,557	47,042	2,941,138	401,445	(2,906,050)	(64,018)
Stockholders' Equity, beginning of period at Jan. 01, 2023	465,720	47,042	2,937,885	414,749	(2,869,780)	(64,176)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Net income	157,502
Other comprehensive income (loss)	574
Stockholders' Equity, end of period at Oct. 01, 2023	342,564	47,042	2,950,916	414,324	(3,006,116)	(63,602)
Stockholders' Equity, beginning of period at Apr. 02, 2023	419,557	47,042	2,941,138	401,445	(2,906,050)	(64,018)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Net income	59,632	0	0	59,632	0	0
Other comprehensive income (loss)	4,949	0	0	0	0	4,949
Cash dividends	(52,612)	0	0	(52,612)	0	0
Repurchases of common stock	(50,183)	0	0	0	(50,183)	0
Share-based compensation	5,609	0	5,609	0	0	0
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	4,965	0	1,136	0	3,829	0
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	(899)	0	(2,182)	0	1,283	0
Other	97	0	53	(16)	60	0
Stockholders' Equity, end of period at Jul. 02, 2023	391,115	47,042	2,945,754	408,449	(2,951,061)	(59,069)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Net income	58,049	0	0	58,049	0	0
Other comprehensive income (loss)	(4,533)	0	0	0	0	(4,533)
Cash dividends	(52,156)	0	0	(52,156)	0	0
Repurchases of common stock	(56,714)	0	0	0	(56,714)	0
Share-based compensation	6,551	0	6,551	0	0	0
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	1,104	0	210	0	894	0
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	(956)	0	(1,658)	0	702	0
Other	104	0	59	(18)	63	0
Stockholders' Equity, end of period at Oct. 01, 2023	342,564	47,042	2,950,916	414,324	(3,006,116)	(63,602)
Stockholders' Equity, beginning of period at Dec. 31, 2023	309,779	47,042	2,960,035	409,863	(3,048,786)	(58,375)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Net income	41,993	0	0	41,993	0	0
Other comprehensive income (loss)	(4,586)	0	0	0	0	(4,586)
Cash dividends	(51,374)	0	0	(51,374)	0	0
Repurchases of common stock	(7,216)	0	0	0	(7,216)	0
Share-based compensation	5,853	0	5,853	0	0	0
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	1,215	0	179	0	1,036	0
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	(2,077)	0	(3,855)	0	1,778	0
Other	67	0	29	(17)	55	0
Stockholders' Equity, end of period at Mar. 31, 2024	293,654	47,042	2,962,241	400,465	(3,053,133)	(62,961)
Stockholders' Equity, beginning of period at Dec. 31, 2023	309,779	47,042	2,960,035	409,863	(3,048,786)	(58,375)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Net income	146,860
Other comprehensive income (loss)	(2,215)
Stockholders' Equity, end of period at Sep. 29, 2024	259,853	47,042	2,967,927	403,259	(3,097,785)	(60,590)
Stockholders' Equity, beginning of period at Mar. 31, 2024	293,654	47,042	2,962,241	400,465	(3,053,133)	(62,961)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Net income	54,643	0	0	54,643	0	0
Other comprehensive income (loss)	(2,011)	0	0	0	0	(2,011)
Cash dividends	(51,252)	0	0	(51,252)	0	0
Repurchases of common stock	(27,493)	0	0	0	(27,493)	0
Share-based compensation	5,824	0	5,824	0	0	0
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	740	0	(134)	0	874	0
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	(426)	0	(3,484)	0	3,058	0
Other	74	0	32	(20)	62	0
Stockholders' Equity, end of period at Jun. 30, 2024	273,753	47,042	2,964,479	403,836	(3,076,632)	(64,972)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Net income	50,224	0	0	50,224	0	0
Other comprehensive income (loss)	4,382	0	0	0	0	4,382
Cash dividends	(50,785)	0	0	(50,785)	0	0
Repurchases of common stock	(25,418)	0	0	0	(25,418)	0
Share-based compensation	6,814	0	6,814	0	0	0
Common stock issued upon exercises of stock options	2,391	0	258	0	2,133	0
Common stock issued upon vesting of restricted shares	(1,585)	0	(3,654)	0	2,069	0
Other	77	0	30	(16)	63	0
Stockholders' Equity, end of period at Sep. 29, 2024	$ 259,853	$ 47,042	$ 2,967,927	$ 403,259	$ (3,097,785)	$ (60,590)

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows - USD ($) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income	$ 146,860	$ 157,502
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization (exclusive of amortization of cloud computing arrangements shown separately below)	110,006	101,258
Amortization of cloud computing arrangements	10,637	7,692
Share-based compensation	18,491	16,769
Impairment of long-lived assets	2,873	513
Deferred income tax	(465)	(502)
Non-cash rental expense, net	31,973	30,724
Change in operating lease liabilities	(36,461)	(35,319)
Net receipt of deferred vendor incentives	1,449	4,007
System optimization (gains), net	(573)	(119)
Distributions received from joint ventures, net of equity in earnings	2,055	1,349
Long-term debt-related activities, net	5,609	7,310
Cloud computing arrangements expenditures	(10,583)	(25,154)
Changes in operating assets and liabilities and other, net	4,810	3,495
Net cash provided by operating activities	286,681	269,525
Cash flows from investing activities:
Capital expenditures	(52,361)	(55,689)
Franchise development fund	(21,040)	(1,947)
Dispositions	3,222	280
Notes receivable, net	1,383	1,825
Net cash used in investing activities	(68,796)	(55,531)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Repayments of long-term debt	(21,937)	(61,280)
Repayments of finance lease liabilities	(15,421)	(16,947)
Repurchases of common stock	(60,056)	(142,413)
Dividends	(153,411)	(157,871)
Proceeds from stock option exercises	4,651	9,113
Payments related to tax withholding for share-based compensation	(4,395)	(3,827)
Net cash used in financing activities	(250,569)	(373,225)
Net cash used in operations before effect of exchange rate changes on cash	(32,684)	(159,231)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash	(1,603)	307
Net decrease in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	(34,287)	(158,924)
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of period	588,816	831,801
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period	$ 554,529	$ 672,877

Basis of Presentation	9 Months Ended
Basis of Presentation	Sep. 29, 2024
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Basis of Presentation	Basis of Presentation The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements (the “Financial Statements”) of The Wendy’s Company (“The Wendy’s Company” and, together with its subsidiaries, the “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our”) have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and, therefore, do not include all information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. In our opinion, the Financial Statements contain all adjustments of a normal recurring nature necessary to present fairly our financial position as of September 29, 2024, the results of our operations for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023 and cash flows for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023. The results of operations for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the full 2024 fiscal year. The Financial Statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements for The Wendy’s Company and notes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 (the “Form 10-K”). The principal 100% owned subsidiary of the Company is Wendy’s International, LLC and its subsidiaries (“Wendy’s”). The Company manages and internally reports its business in the following segments: (1) Wendy’s U.S., (2) Wendy’s International and (3) Global Real Estate & Development. See Note 16 for further information. We report on a fiscal year consisting of 52 or 53 weeks ending on the Sunday closest to or on December 31. All three- and nine-month periods presented herein contain 13 weeks and 39 weeks, respectively. All references to years, quarters and months relate to fiscal periods rather than calendar periods. Our significant interim accounting policies include the recognition of advertising funds expense in proportion to advertising funds revenue.

Revenue

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Revenue [Abstract]

Revenue

Disaggregation of Revenue

The following tables disaggregate revenue by segment and source:


	Wendy’s U.S.		Wendy’s International		Global Real Estate & Development		Total
Three Months Ended September 29, 2024
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	222,745	$	7,658	$	—	$	230,403
Franchise royalty revenue	114,379		18,222		—		132,601
Franchise fees	17,859		2,306		1,102		21,267
Franchise rental income	—		—		59,314		59,314
Advertising funds revenue	113,742		9,412		—		123,154
Total revenues	$	468,725	$	37,598	$	60,416	$	566,739

Three Months Ended October 1, 2023
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	227,674	$	7,047	$	—	$	234,721
Franchise royalty revenue	112,698		17,390		—		130,088
Franchise fees	17,079		1,597		581		19,257
Franchise rental income	—		—		57,567		57,567
Advertising funds revenue	99,789		9,133		—		108,922
Total revenues	$	457,240	$	35,167	$	58,148	$	550,555


	Wendy’s U.S.		Wendy’s International		Global Real Estate & Development		Total
Nine Months Ended September 29, 2024
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	673,364	$	19,717	$	—	$	693,081
Franchise royalty revenue	341,229		53,370		—		394,599
Franchise fees	53,511		6,584		3,344		63,439
Franchise rental income	—		—		177,938		177,938
Advertising funds revenue	316,059		27,103		—		343,162
Total revenues	$	1,384,163	$	106,774	$	181,282	$	1,672,219

Nine Months Ended October 1, 2023
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	685,168	$	18,190	$	—	$	703,358
Franchise royalty revenue	333,958		50,408		—		384,366
Franchise fees	51,812		4,515		3,377		59,704
Franchise rental income	—		—		173,407		173,407
Advertising funds revenue	296,043		24,049		—		320,092
Total revenues	$	1,366,981	$	97,162	$	176,784	$	1,640,927

Contract Balances

The following table provides information about receivables and contract liabilities (deferred franchise fees) from contracts with customers:


	September 29, 2024 (a)		December 31, 2023 (a)
Receivables, which are included in “Accounts and notes receivable, net” (b)	$	54,814	$	55,293
Receivables, which are included in “Advertising funds restricted assets”	68,354		76,838
Deferred franchise fees (c)	100,754		100,805

_______________

(b)Includes receivables related to “Sales” and “Franchise royalty revenue and fees.”

Significant changes in deferred franchise fees are as follows:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Deferred franchise fees at beginning of period	$	100,805	$	99,208
Revenue recognized during the period	(8,873)		(9,016)
New deferrals due to cash received and other	8,822		9,697
Deferred franchise fees at end of period	$	100,754	$	99,889

Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees

The following table reflects the estimated franchise fees to be recognized in the future related to performance obligations that are unsatisfied at the end of the period:


Estimate for fiscal year:
2024 (a)	$	6,427
2025	6,685
2026	6,546
2027	6,439
2028	6,320
Thereafter	68,337
	$	100,754

_______________

(a)Represents franchise fees expected to be recognized for the remainder of 2024, which includes development-related franchise fees expected to be recognized over a duration of one year or less.

System Optimization Gains, Net

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

System Optimization

System optimization gains, net

System Optimization Gains, Net

The following is a summary of the disposition activity recorded as a result of our system optimization initiative:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Number of restaurants sold to franchisees	1		—		1		—

Proceeds from sales of restaurants	$	834	$	—	$	834	$	—
Net assets sold (a)	(725)		—		(725)		—
Other	6		—		6		—
	115		—		115		—
Post-closing adjustments on sales of restaurants (b)	440		537		694		537
Gain on sales of restaurants, net	555		537		809		537

Loss on sales of other assets, net (c)	(135)		(417)		(236)		(418)
System optimization gains, net	$	420	$	120	$	573	$	119

_______________

(a)Net assets sold consisted primarily of land.

(b)Represents the recognition of deferred gains as a result of the resolution of certain contingencies related to the extension of lease terms for restaurants previously sold to franchisees.

Assets Held for Sale

Reorganization and Realignment Costs

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Restructuring and Related Activities [Abstract]

Reorganization and Realignment Costs

The following is a summary of the initiatives included in “Reorganization and realignment costs:”


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Organizational redesign	$	296	$	579	$	8,327	$	7,986

Other reorganization and realignment plans	58		32		152		114
Reorganization and realignment costs	$	354	$	611	$	8,479	$	8,100

Organizational Redesign

The following is a summary of the costs recorded as a result of the Organizational Redesign Plan:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended				Total Incurred Since Inception
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Severance and related employee costs	$	12	$	114	$	7,322	$	5,674	$	13,565
Recruitment and relocation costs	75		140		157		304		711
Third-party and other costs	57		173		120		904		1,117
	144		427		7,599		6,882		15,393
Share-based compensation (a)	152		152		728		1,104		1,998
Total organizational redesign	$	296	$	579	$	8,327	$	7,986	$	17,391

_______________

(a)Primarily represents the accelerated recognition of share-based compensation resulting from the termination of employees under the Organizational Redesign Plan.


	Balance December 31, 2023		Charges		Payments		Balance September 29, 2024
Severance and related employee costs	$	1,692	$	7,322	$	(3,589)	$	5,425
Recruitment and relocation costs	—		157		(157)		—
Third-party and other costs	—		120		(120)		—
	$	1,692	$	7,599	$	(3,866)	$	5,425


	Balance January 1, 2023		Charges		Payments		Balance October 1, 2023
Severance and related employee costs	$	—	$	5,674	$	(3,524)	$	2,150
Recruitment and relocation costs	—		304		(304)		—
Third-party and other costs	—		904		(904)		—
	$	—	$	6,882	$	(4,732)	$	2,150

Other Reorganization and Realignment Plans

Investments

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Investments [Abstract]

Investments

The following is a summary of the carrying value of our investments:


	September 29, 2024		December 31, 2023
Equity method investment	$	30,040	$	32,727
Other investments in equity securities	1,718		1,718
	$	31,758	$	34,445

Equity Method Investment

Presented below is activity related to our investment in TimWen included in our condensed consolidated financial statements:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Balance at beginning of period	$	32,727	$	33,921

Equity in earnings for the period	10,493		10,012
Amortization of purchase price adjustments (a)	(1,870)		(2,051)
	8,623		7,961
Distributions received	(10,678)		(9,310)
Foreign currency translation adjustment included in “Other comprehensive income (loss)”	(632)		151
Balance at end of period	$	30,040	$	32,723

_______________

(a)Purchase price adjustments that impacted the carrying value of the Company’s investment in TimWen are being amortized over the average original aggregate life of 21 years.

Other Investments in Equity Securities

Fair Value Measurements

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]

Fair Value Measurements

•Level 1 Inputs - Quoted prices for identical assets or liabilities in active markets.

Financial Instruments

The following table presents the carrying amounts and estimated fair values of the Company’s financial instruments:


	September 29, 2024				December 31, 2023
	Carrying Amount		Fair Value		Carrying Amount		Fair Value		Fair Value Measurements
Financial assets
Cash equivalents	$	333,761	$	333,761	$	365,901	$	365,901	Level 1
Other investments in equity securities (a)	1,718		1,718		1,718		1,718		Level 2

Financial liabilities (b)
Series 2022-1 Class A-2-I Notes	97,750		95,635		98,500		92,289		Level 2
Series 2022-1 Class A-2-II Notes	387,134		367,777		390,134		370,577		Level 2
Series 2021-1 Class A-2-I Notes	419,894		379,609		423,269		362,572		Level 2
Series 2021-1 Class A-2-II Notes	628,655		553,411		633,530		530,581		Level 2
Series 2019-1 Class A-2-I Notes	354,673		348,204		357,673		341,606		Level 2
Series 2019-1 Class A-2-II Notes	399,748		388,131		403,123		374,058		Level 2
Series 2018-1 Class A-2-II Notes	437,537		425,767		441,099		412,754		Level 2
7% debentures, due in 2025	48,744		49,586		48,237		49,431		Level 2

_______________

(b)The fair values were based on quoted market prices in markets that are not considered active markets.

Non-Recurring Fair Value Measurements


			Fair Value Measurements
	September 29, 2024		Level 1		Level 2		Level 3
Held and used	$	2,372	$	—	$	—	$	2,372
Held for sale	2,241		—		—		2,241
Total	$	4,613	$	—	$	—	$	4,613


			Fair Value Measurements
	December 31, 2023		Level 1		Level 2		Level 3
Held and used	$	1,212	$	—	$	—	$	1,212
Held for sale	1,044		—		—		1,044
Total	$	2,256	$	—	$	—	$	2,256

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Asset Impairment Charges [Abstract]

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Company-operated restaurants	$	—	$	—	$	2,418	$	428
Surplus properties	178		59		455		85
	$	178	$	59	$	2,873	$	513

Income Taxes	9 Months Ended
Income Taxes	Sep. 29, 2024
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Income Taxes	Income Taxes The Company’s effective tax rate for the three months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023 was 27.9% and 25.5%, respectively. The Company’s effective tax rate varied from the U.S. federal statutory rate of 21% for the three months ended September 29, 2024 primarily due to state income taxes and the tax effects of our foreign operations. The Company’s effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023 was 27.3% and 25.8%, respectively. The Company’s effective tax rate varied from the U.S. federal statutory rate of 21% for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 primarily due to state income taxes and the tax effects of our foreign operations. There were no significant changes to the unrecognized tax benefits or related interest and penalties for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024. During the next twelve months, we believe it is reasonably possible the Company will reduce unrecognized tax benefits by up to $220 due to lapses of statutes of limitations. The current portion of refundable income taxes was $9,307 and $5,284 as of September 29, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively, and is included in “Accounts and notes receivable, net.” There were no long-term refundable income taxes as of September 29, 2024 or December 31, 2023.

Net Income Per Share

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Earnings Per Share [Abstract]

Net Income Per Share

The calculation of basic and diluted net income per share was as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Net income	$	50,224	$	58,049	$	146,860	$	157,502

Common stock:
Weighted average basic shares outstanding	203,264		208,834		204,518		210,668
Dilutive effect of stock options and restricted shares	990		1,768		1,285		2,185
Weighted average diluted shares outstanding	204,254		210,602		205,803		212,853

Net income per share:
Basic	$	.25	$	.28	$	.72	$	.75
Diluted	$	.25	$	.28	$	.71	$	.74

Stockholders' Equity

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Equity [Abstract]

Stockholders' Equity

Stockholders’ Equity

Dividends

During each of the first, second, and third quarters of 2024 and 2023, the Company paid dividends per share of $.25.

Repurchases of Common Stock

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss

The following table provides a rollforward of accumulated other comprehensive loss, which is entirely comprised of foreign currency translation:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Balance at beginning of period	$	(58,375)	$	(64,176)
Foreign currency translation	(2,215)		574
Balance at end of period	$	(60,590)	$	(63,602)

Leases

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Leases [Abstract]

Leases, Company as Lessee

Leases

Nature of Leases


			September 29, 2024
Company-operated restaurants:
Owned land and building			154
Owned building and held long-term land leases			145
Leased land and building			112
Total Company-operated restaurants			411

Franchisee-operated restaurants:
Company-owned properties leased to franchisees			492
Company-leased properties subleased to franchisees			1,161
Other franchisee-operated restaurants			5,228
Total franchisee-operated restaurants			6,881
Total Company-operated and franchisee-operated restaurants			7,292

Company as Lessee

The components of lease cost are as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Finance lease cost:
Amortization of finance lease assets	$	4,779	$	4,111	$	13,448	$	12,232
Interest on finance lease liabilities	10,921		10,664		32,278		32,157
	15,700		14,775		45,726		44,389
Operating lease cost	21,496		21,577		64,721		64,455
Variable lease cost (a)	17,087		16,889		50,940		50,489
Short-term lease cost	1,478		1,466		4,098		4,433
Total operating lease cost (b)	40,061		39,932		119,759		119,377
Total lease cost	$	55,761	$	54,707	$	165,485	$	163,766

_______________

Leases, Company as Lessor

Company as Lessor

The components of lease income are as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Sales-type and direct-financing leases:
Selling profit	$	67	$	354	$	139	$	1,555
Interest income (a)	7,110		7,853		22,007		23,583

Operating lease income	41,882		40,567		126,329		123,352
Variable lease income	17,432		17,000		51,609		50,055
Franchise rental income (b)	$	59,314	$	57,567	$	177,938	$	173,407

_______________

(a)Included in “Interest expense, net.”

respectively, and $30,356 and $29,704 for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively.

Supplemental Cash Flow Information

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Supplemental Cash Flow Elements [Abstract]

Supplemental Cash Flow Information

The following table includes supplemental non-cash investing and financing activities:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Supplemental non-cash investing and financing activities:
Capital expenditures included in accounts payable	$	10,734	$	10,856
Finance leases	21,531		13,436

The following table includes a reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash:


	September 29, 2024		December 31, 2023
Reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	482,224	$	516,037
Restricted cash	35,180		35,848
Restricted cash, included in Advertising funds restricted assets	37,125		36,931
Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	$	554,529	$	588,816

Transactions with Related Parties	9 Months Ended
Transactions with Related Parties	Sep. 29, 2024
Related Party Transactions [Abstract]
Transactions with Related Parties	Transactions with Related Parties Except as described below, the Company did not have any significant changes in or transactions with its related parties during the current fiscal period since those reported in the Form 10-K. TimWen Lease and Management Fee Payments A wholly-owned subsidiary of Wendy’s leases restaurant facilities from TimWen, which are then subleased to franchisees for the operation of Wendy’s/Tim Hortons combo units in Canada. Wendy’s paid TimWen $16,065 and $15,713 under these lease agreements during the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively, which is recorded to “Franchise rental expense.” In addition, TimWen paid Wendy’s a management fee under the TimWen joint venture agreement of $179 and $181 during the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively, which is included as a reduction to “General and administrative.” Transactions with QSCC Wendy’s has a purchasing co-op relationship structure with its franchisees that establishes Quality Supply Chain Co-op, Inc. (“QSCC”). QSCC manages, for the Wendy’s system in the U.S. and Canada, contracts for the purchase and distribution of food, proprietary paper, operating supplies and equipment under national agreements with pricing based upon total system volume. QSCC’s supply chain management facilitates continuity of supply and provides consolidated purchasing efficiencies while monitoring and seeking to minimize possible obsolete inventory throughout the Wendy’s supply chain in the U.S. and Canada. Wendy’s and its franchisees pay sourcing fees to third-party vendors on certain products sourced by QSCC. Such sourcing fees are remitted by these vendors to QSCC and are the primary means of funding QSCC’s operations. In addition, QSCC collects certain rebates, price variance and other recoveries, technology fees, convention fees and other funding from third-party vendors as part of the administration and management of the Wendy’s supply chain in the U.S. and Canada. Should QSCC’s sourcing fees exceed its expected needs, QSCC’s board of directors may return some or all of the excess to its members in the form of a patronage dividend. Wendy’s recorded its share of patronage dividends of $3,493 during the nine months ended September 29, 2024, of which $2,909 is included in “Other operating income, net” and $584 is included as a reduction of “Cost of sales.” Wendy’s recorded its share of patronage dividends of $363 during the nine months ended October 1, 2023, all of which is included as a reduction of “Cost of sales.” Transactions with Yellow Cab Certain family members and/or affiliates of Mr. Nelson Peltz, our former Chairman, Mr. Peter May, our Senior Vice Chairman, and Mr. Matthew Peltz, our Vice Chairman, hold minority ownership interests in Yellow Cab Holdings, LLC (“Yellow Cab”), a Wendy’s franchisee, that as of September 29, 2024 owns and operates 87 Wendy’s restaurants, and/or certain of the operating companies managed by Yellow Cab. During the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, the Company recognized $11,397 and $11,143, respectively, in royalty, advertising fund, lease and other income from Yellow Cab and related entities. In all transactions involving Yellow Cab, the Company’s standard franchisee recruiting and approval processes were followed, no modifications were made to the Company’s standard franchise agreements or related documents, and all deal terms and transaction documents were negotiated and executed on an arm’s-length basis, consistent with the Company’s comparable franchise transactions and relationships. As of September 29, 2024 and December 31, 2023, $1,099 and $1,153, respectively, was due from Yellow Cab for such income, which is included in “Accounts and notes receivable, net” and “Advertising funds restricted assets.” Transactions with AMC In February 2023, Ms. Kristin Dolan, a director of the Company, was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of AMC Networks Inc. (“AMC”). During the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, the Company purchased approximately $1,600 and $1,800, respectively, of advertising time from a subsidiary of AMC. The Company’s advertising spend with AMC was made in the ordinary course of business and approved on an arm’s-length basis, consistent with the Company’s comparable advertising decisions. As of December 31, 2023, approximately $584 was due to AMC for such advertising time, which is included in “Advertising funds restricted liabilities.” There were no amounts due to AMC as of September 29, 2024.

Guarantees and Other Commitments and Contingencies	9 Months Ended
Guarantees and Other Commitments and Contingencies	Sep. 29, 2024
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Guarantees and Other Commitments and Contingencies	Guarantees and Other Commitments and Contingencies Except as described below, the Company did not have any significant changes in guarantees and other commitments and contingencies during the current fiscal period since those reported in the Form 10-K. Refer to the Form 10-K for further information regarding the Company’s additional commitments and obligations. Franchisee Incentive Programs To promote new restaurant development, Wendy’s has provided franchisees with certain incentive programs for qualifying new restaurants. In July and September 2024, Wendy’s announced a new development incentive structure in the U.S. and Canada and select international markets, respectively, that provides for reductions in royalty and national advertising fees for qualifying new restaurants for two, three or four years of operation based on the number of restaurants committed to under the development agreement. Lease Guarantees Wendy’s has guaranteed the performance of certain leases and other obligations, primarily from former Company-operated restaurant locations now operated by franchisees, amounting to $86,450 as of September 29, 2024. These leases extend through 2045. We have had no judgments against us as guarantor of these leases as of September 29, 2024. In the event of default by a franchise owner where Wendy’s is called upon to perform under its guarantee, Wendy’s has the ability to pursue repayment from the franchise owner. The liability recorded for our probable exposure associated with these lease guarantees was not material as of September 29, 2024. Letters of Credit As of September 29, 2024, the Company had outstanding letters of credit with various parties totaling $28,673. Substantially all of the outstanding letters of credit include amounts outstanding against the 2021-1 Variable Funding Senior Secured Notes, Class A-1. We do not expect any material loss to result from these letters of credit. Purchase and Capital Commitments The Company has material purchase requirements under a marketing agreement with two national broadcasters and a beverage agreement with a vendor. In August 2024, the Company amended its contract with the beverage vendor, which now expires upon reaching a threshold usage requirement or, if certain undertakings are not fulfilled, at the later of reaching a threshold usage requirement or December 31, 2034. Our total purchase requirements under the marketing agreement and the amended beverage agreement are estimated to be approximately $107,500 over the remaining life of the contracts.

Legal and Environmental Matters	9 Months Ended
Legal and Environmental Matters	Sep. 29, 2024
Loss Contingency [Abstract]
Legal and Environmental Matters	Legal and Environmental Matters The Company is involved in litigation and claims incidental to our business. We provide accruals for such litigation and claims when we determine it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the loss is reasonably estimable. The Company believes it has adequate accruals for all of our legal and environmental matters. We cannot estimate the aggregate possible range of loss for our existing litigation and claims due to various reasons, including, but not limited to, many proceedings being in preliminary stages, with various motions either yet to be submitted or pending, discovery yet to occur and significant factual matters unresolved. In addition, most cases seek an indeterminate amount of damages and many involve multiple parties. Predicting the outcomes of settlement discussions or judicial or arbitral decisions is thus inherently difficult and future developments could cause these actions or claims, individually or in aggregate, to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows of a particular reporting period.

Segment Information (Notes)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

Segment Information

Revenues by segment are as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Wendy’s U.S.	$	468,725	$	457,240	$	1,384,163	$	1,366,981
Wendy’s International	37,598		35,167		106,774		97,162
Global Real Estate & Development	60,416		58,148		181,282		176,784
Total revenues	$	566,739	$	550,555	$	1,672,219	$	1,640,927

The following table reconciles profit by segment to the Company’s consolidated income before income taxes:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Wendy’s U.S. (a)	$	129,790	$	134,887	$	392,323	$	403,064
Wendy’s International (b)	11,046		10,831		32,411		26,808
Global Real Estate & Development	27,237		24,418		79,480		76,020
Total segment profit	168,073		170,136		$	504,214	$	505,892
Unallocated franchise support and other costs	(900)		(29)		(1,117)		(6)
Advertising funds deficit	190		1,088		651		3,509
Unallocated general and administrative (c)	(32,443)		(30,962)		(98,289)		(96,776)
Depreciation and amortization (exclusive of amortization of cloud computing arrangements shown separately below)	(36,996)		(34,288)		(110,006)		(101,258)
Amortization of cloud computing arrangements	(3,576)		(3,844)		(10,637)		(7,692)
System optimization gains, net	420		120		573		119
Reorganization and realignment costs	(354)		(611)		(8,479)		(8,100)
Impairment of long-lived assets	(178)		(59)		(2,873)		(513)
Unallocated other operating income, net	439		52		1,301		180
Interest expense, net	(31,270)		(30,957)		(92,800)		(93,798)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt	—		(319)		—		(1,585)
Investment income (loss), net	—		—		11		(10,389)
Other income, net	6,246		7,637		19,382		22,546
Income before income taxes	$	69,651	$	77,964	$	201,931	$	212,129

_______________

(a)Wendy’s U.S. includes advertising funds expense of $5,977 and $13,386 for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024 related to the Company’s funding of incremental advertising.

(c)Includes corporate overhead costs, such as employee compensation and related benefits.

New Accounting Standards	9 Months Ended
New Accounting Standards	Sep. 29, 2024
Accounting Standards Update and Change in Accounting Principle [Abstract]
New Accounting Standards	New Accounting Standards New Accounting Standard Adopted Common-Control Lease Arrangements In March 2023, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued an update to amend certain lease accounting guidance that applies to arrangements between related parties under common control. The amendment requires a lessee in a common-control lease arrangement to amortize leasehold improvements that it owns over the useful life of the improvements to the common-control group, regardless of the lease term, if the lessee continues to control the use of the underlying asset through a lease. The Company adopted this amendment during the first quarter of 2024. The adoption of this amendment did not have a material impact on our condensed consolidated financial statements.

Revenue (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Revenue [Abstract]

Disaggregation of Revenue

The following tables disaggregate revenue by segment and source:


	Wendy’s U.S.		Wendy’s International		Global Real Estate & Development		Total
Three Months Ended September 29, 2024
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	222,745	$	7,658	$	—	$	230,403
Franchise royalty revenue	114,379		18,222		—		132,601
Franchise fees	17,859		2,306		1,102		21,267
Franchise rental income	—		—		59,314		59,314
Advertising funds revenue	113,742		9,412		—		123,154
Total revenues	$	468,725	$	37,598	$	60,416	$	566,739

Three Months Ended October 1, 2023
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	227,674	$	7,047	$	—	$	234,721
Franchise royalty revenue	112,698		17,390		—		130,088
Franchise fees	17,079		1,597		581		19,257
Franchise rental income	—		—		57,567		57,567
Advertising funds revenue	99,789		9,133		—		108,922
Total revenues	$	457,240	$	35,167	$	58,148	$	550,555


	Wendy’s U.S.		Wendy’s International		Global Real Estate & Development		Total
Nine Months Ended September 29, 2024
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	673,364	$	19,717	$	—	$	693,081
Franchise royalty revenue	341,229		53,370		—		394,599
Franchise fees	53,511		6,584		3,344		63,439
Franchise rental income	—		—		177,938		177,938
Advertising funds revenue	316,059		27,103		—		343,162
Total revenues	$	1,384,163	$	106,774	$	181,282	$	1,672,219

Nine Months Ended October 1, 2023
Sales at Company-operated restaurants	$	685,168	$	18,190	$	—	$	703,358
Franchise royalty revenue	333,958		50,408		—		384,366
Franchise fees	51,812		4,515		3,377		59,704
Franchise rental income	—		—		173,407		173,407
Advertising funds revenue	296,043		24,049		—		320,092
Total revenues	$	1,366,981	$	97,162	$	176,784	$	1,640,927

Contract Balances, assets and liabilities

The following table provides information about receivables and contract liabilities (deferred franchise fees) from contracts with customers:


	September 29, 2024 (a)		December 31, 2023 (a)
Receivables, which are included in “Accounts and notes receivable, net” (b)	$	54,814	$	55,293
Receivables, which are included in “Advertising funds restricted assets”	68,354		76,838
Deferred franchise fees (c)	100,754		100,805

_______________

(b)Includes receivables related to “Sales” and “Franchise royalty revenue and fees.”

Contract Balances, deferred franchise fee rollforward

Significant changes in deferred franchise fees are as follows:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Deferred franchise fees at beginning of period	$	100,805	$	99,208
Revenue recognized during the period	(8,873)		(9,016)
New deferrals due to cash received and other	8,822		9,697
Deferred franchise fees at end of period	$	100,754	$	99,889

Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees

The following table reflects the estimated franchise fees to be recognized in the future related to performance obligations that are unsatisfied at the end of the period:


Estimate for fiscal year:
2024 (a)	$	6,427
2025	6,685
2026	6,546
2027	6,439
2028	6,320
Thereafter	68,337
	$	100,754

_______________

(a)Represents franchise fees expected to be recognized for the remainder of 2024, which includes development-related franchise fees expected to be recognized over a duration of one year or less.

System Optimization Gains, Net (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

System Optimization Initiative

System optimization gains, net

Summary of Disposition Activity

The following is a summary of the disposition activity recorded as a result of our system optimization initiative:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Number of restaurants sold to franchisees	1		—		1		—

Proceeds from sales of restaurants	$	834	$	—	$	834	$	—
Net assets sold (a)	(725)		—		(725)		—
Other	6		—		6		—
	115		—		115		—
Post-closing adjustments on sales of restaurants (b)	440		537		694		537
Gain on sales of restaurants, net	555		537		809		537

Loss on sales of other assets, net (c)	(135)		(417)		(236)		(418)
System optimization gains, net	$	420	$	120	$	573	$	119

_______________

(a)Net assets sold consisted primarily of land.

(b)Represents the recognition of deferred gains as a result of the resolution of certain contingencies related to the extension of lease terms for restaurants previously sold to franchisees.

Reorganization and Realignment Costs (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Restructuring Cost and Reserve

Restructuring and Related Costs

The following is a summary of the initiatives included in “Reorganization and realignment costs:”


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Organizational redesign	$	296	$	579	$	8,327	$	7,986

Other reorganization and realignment plans	58		32		152		114
Reorganization and realignment costs	$	354	$	611	$	8,479	$	8,100

Organizational Redesign

Restructuring Cost and Reserve

Restructuring and Related Costs

The following is a summary of the costs recorded as a result of the Organizational Redesign Plan:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended				Total Incurred Since Inception
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Severance and related employee costs	$	12	$	114	$	7,322	$	5,674	$	13,565
Recruitment and relocation costs	75		140		157		304		711
Third-party and other costs	57		173		120		904		1,117
	144		427		7,599		6,882		15,393
Share-based compensation (a)	152		152		728		1,104		1,998
Total organizational redesign	$	296	$	579	$	8,327	$	7,986	$	17,391

_______________

(a)Primarily represents the accelerated recognition of share-based compensation resulting from the termination of employees under the Organizational Redesign Plan.

Schedule of Restructuring Reserve by Type of Cost


	Balance December 31, 2023		Charges		Payments		Balance September 29, 2024
Severance and related employee costs	$	1,692	$	7,322	$	(3,589)	$	5,425
Recruitment and relocation costs	—		157		(157)		—
Third-party and other costs	—		120		(120)		—
	$	1,692	$	7,599	$	(3,866)	$	5,425


	Balance January 1, 2023		Charges		Payments		Balance October 1, 2023
Severance and related employee costs	$	—	$	5,674	$	(3,524)	$	2,150
Recruitment and relocation costs	—		304		(304)		—
Third-party and other costs	—		904		(904)		—
	$	—	$	6,882	$	(4,732)	$	2,150

Investments (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Schedule of Equity Method Investments

Schedule of Equity Method Investments and Other Investments in Equity Securities

The following is a summary of the carrying value of our investments:


	September 29, 2024		December 31, 2023
Equity method investment	$	30,040	$	32,727
Other investments in equity securities	1,718		1,718
	$	31,758	$	34,445

Schedule of Equity Method Investments

Presented below is activity related to our investment in TimWen included in our condensed consolidated financial statements:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Balance at beginning of period	$	32,727	$	33,921

Equity in earnings for the period	10,493		10,012
Amortization of purchase price adjustments (a)	(1,870)		(2,051)
	8,623		7,961
Distributions received	(10,678)		(9,310)
Foreign currency translation adjustment included in “Other comprehensive income (loss)”	(632)		151
Balance at end of period	$	30,040	$	32,723

_______________

(a)Purchase price adjustments that impacted the carrying value of the Company’s investment in TimWen are being amortized over the average original aggregate life of 21 years.

Fair Value Measurements (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]

Fair Value, by Balance Sheet Grouping

The following table presents the carrying amounts and estimated fair values of the Company’s financial instruments:


	September 29, 2024				December 31, 2023
	Carrying Amount		Fair Value		Carrying Amount		Fair Value		Fair Value Measurements
Financial assets
Cash equivalents	$	333,761	$	333,761	$	365,901	$	365,901	Level 1
Other investments in equity securities (a)	1,718		1,718		1,718		1,718		Level 2

Financial liabilities (b)
Series 2022-1 Class A-2-I Notes	97,750		95,635		98,500		92,289		Level 2
Series 2022-1 Class A-2-II Notes	387,134		367,777		390,134		370,577		Level 2
Series 2021-1 Class A-2-I Notes	419,894		379,609		423,269		362,572		Level 2
Series 2021-1 Class A-2-II Notes	628,655		553,411		633,530		530,581		Level 2
Series 2019-1 Class A-2-I Notes	354,673		348,204		357,673		341,606		Level 2
Series 2019-1 Class A-2-II Notes	399,748		388,131		403,123		374,058		Level 2
Series 2018-1 Class A-2-II Notes	437,537		425,767		441,099		412,754		Level 2
7% debentures, due in 2025	48,744		49,586		48,237		49,431		Level 2

_______________

(b)The fair values were based on quoted market prices in markets that are not considered active markets.

Fair value of assets and liabilities (other than cash and cash equivalents) measured at fair value on a nonrecurring basis


			Fair Value Measurements
	September 29, 2024		Level 1		Level 2		Level 3
Held and used	$	2,372	$	—	$	—	$	2,372
Held for sale	2,241		—		—		2,241
Total	$	4,613	$	—	$	—	$	4,613


			Fair Value Measurements
	December 31, 2023		Level 1		Level 2		Level 3
Held and used	$	1,212	$	—	$	—	$	1,212
Held for sale	1,044		—		—		1,044
Total	$	2,256	$	—	$	—	$	2,256

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Asset Impairment Charges [Abstract]

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Company-operated restaurants	$	—	$	—	$	2,418	$	428
Surplus properties	178		59		455		85
	$	178	$	59	$	2,873	$	513

Net Income Per Share (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Earnings Per Share [Abstract]

Schedule of Earnings Per Share, Basic and Diluted

The calculation of basic and diluted net income per share was as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Net income	$	50,224	$	58,049	$	146,860	$	157,502

Common stock:
Weighted average basic shares outstanding	203,264		208,834		204,518		210,668
Dilutive effect of stock options and restricted shares	990		1,768		1,285		2,185
Weighted average diluted shares outstanding	204,254		210,602		205,803		212,853

Net income per share:
Basic	$	.25	$	.28	$	.72	$	.75
Diluted	$	.25	$	.28	$	.71	$	.74

Stockholders' Equity (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Equity [Abstract]

Schedule of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss

The following table provides a rollforward of accumulated other comprehensive loss, which is entirely comprised of foreign currency translation:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Balance at beginning of period	$	(58,375)	$	(64,176)
Foreign currency translation	(2,215)		574
Balance at end of period	$	(60,590)	$	(63,602)

Leases (Tables)

3 Months Ended

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Leases [Abstract]

Schedule of Real Estate Properties

As of September 29, 2024, the nature of restaurants operated by the Company and its franchisees was as follows:


			September 29, 2024
Company-operated restaurants:
Owned land and building			154
Owned building and held long-term land leases			145
Leased land and building			112
Total Company-operated restaurants			411

Franchisee-operated restaurants:
Company-owned properties leased to franchisees			492
Company-leased properties subleased to franchisees			1,161
Other franchisee-operated restaurants			5,228
Total franchisee-operated restaurants			6,881
Total Company-operated and franchisee-operated restaurants			7,292

Lease, Cost

The components of lease cost are as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Finance lease cost:
Amortization of finance lease assets	$	4,779	$	4,111	$	13,448	$	12,232
Interest on finance lease liabilities	10,921		10,664		32,278		32,157
	15,700		14,775		45,726		44,389
Operating lease cost	21,496		21,577		64,721		64,455
Variable lease cost (a)	17,087		16,889		50,940		50,489
Short-term lease cost	1,478		1,466		4,098		4,433
Total operating lease cost (b)	40,061		39,932		119,759		119,377
Total lease cost	$	55,761	$	54,707	$	165,485	$	163,766

_______________

Lease, Income

The components of lease income are as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Sales-type and direct-financing leases:
Selling profit	$	67	$	354	$	139	$	1,555
Interest income (a)	7,110		7,853		22,007		23,583

Operating lease income	41,882		40,567		126,329		123,352
Variable lease income	17,432		17,000		51,609		50,055
Franchise rental income (b)	$	59,314	$	57,567	$	177,938	$	173,407

_______________

(a)Included in “Interest expense, net.”

respectively, and $30,356 and $29,704 for the nine months ended September 29, 2024 and October 1, 2023, respectively.

Supplemental Cash Flow Information (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Supplemental Cash Flow Elements [Abstract]

Supplemental Cash Flow Information

The following table includes supplemental non-cash investing and financing activities:


	Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Supplemental non-cash investing and financing activities:
Capital expenditures included in accounts payable	$	10,734	$	10,856
Finance leases	21,531		13,436

The following table includes a reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash:


	September 29, 2024		December 31, 2023
Reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	482,224	$	516,037
Restricted cash	35,180		35,848
Restricted cash, included in Advertising funds restricted assets	37,125		36,931
Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	$	554,529	$	588,816

Segment Information (Tables)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2024

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

Reconciliation of Revenue from Segments to Consolidated

Revenues by segment are as follows:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Wendy’s U.S.	$	468,725	$	457,240	$	1,384,163	$	1,366,981
Wendy’s International	37,598		35,167		106,774		97,162
Global Real Estate & Development	60,416		58,148		181,282		176,784
Total revenues	$	566,739	$	550,555	$	1,672,219	$	1,640,927

Reconciliation of Profit from Segments to Consolidated

The following table reconciles profit by segment to the Company’s consolidated income before income taxes:


	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023		September 29, 2024		October 1, 2023
Wendy’s U.S. (a)	$	129,790	$	134,887	$	392,323	$	403,064
Wendy’s International (b)	11,046		10,831		32,411		26,808
Global Real Estate & Development	27,237		24,418		79,480		76,020
Total segment profit	168,073		170,136		$	504,214	$	505,892
Unallocated franchise support and other costs	(900)		(29)		(1,117)		(6)
Advertising funds deficit	190		1,088		651		3,509
Unallocated general and administrative (c)	(32,443)		(30,962)		(98,289)		(96,776)
Depreciation and amortization (exclusive of amortization of cloud computing arrangements shown separately below)	(36,996)		(34,288)		(110,006)		(101,258)
Amortization of cloud computing arrangements	(3,576)		(3,844)		(10,637)		(7,692)
System optimization gains, net	420		120		573		119
Reorganization and realignment costs	(354)		(611)		(8,479)		(8,100)
Impairment of long-lived assets	(178)		(59)		(2,873)		(513)
Unallocated other operating income, net	439		52		1,301		180
Interest expense, net	(31,270)		(30,957)		(92,800)		(93,798)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt	—		(319)		—		(1,585)
Investment income (loss), net	—		—		11		(10,389)
Other income, net	6,246		7,637		19,382		22,546
Income before income taxes	$	69,651	$	77,964	$	201,931	$	212,129

_______________

(a)Wendy’s U.S. includes advertising funds expense of $5,977 and $13,386 for the three and nine months ended September 29, 2024 related to the Company’s funding of incremental advertising.

(c)Includes corporate overhead costs, such as employee compensation and related benefits.

Revenue Disaggregation of Revenue (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Disaggregation of Revenue
Total revenues	$ 566,739	$ 550,555	$ 1,672,219	$ 1,640,927
Sales at Company-operated restaurants
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	230,403	234,721	693,081	703,358
Franchise royalty revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	132,601	130,088	394,599	384,366
Franchise fees
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	21,267	19,257	63,439	59,704
Franchise rental income
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	59,314	57,567	177,938	173,407
Advertising funds revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	123,154	108,922	343,162	320,092
Wendy's U.S.
Disaggregation of Revenue
Total revenues	468,725	457,240	1,384,163	1,366,981
Wendy's U.S. \| Sales at Company-operated restaurants
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	222,745	227,674	673,364	685,168
Wendy's U.S. \| Franchise royalty revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	114,379	112,698	341,229	333,958
Wendy's U.S. \| Franchise fees
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	17,859	17,079	53,511	51,812
Wendy's U.S. \| Franchise rental income
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	0	0	0	0
Wendy's U.S. \| Advertising funds revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	113,742	99,789	316,059	296,043
Wendy's International
Disaggregation of Revenue
Total revenues	37,598	35,167	106,774	97,162
Wendy's International \| Sales at Company-operated restaurants
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	7,658	7,047	19,717	18,190
Wendy's International \| Franchise royalty revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	18,222	17,390	53,370	50,408
Wendy's International \| Franchise fees
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	2,306	1,597	6,584	4,515
Wendy's International \| Franchise rental income
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	0	0	0	0
Wendy's International \| Advertising funds revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	9,412	9,133	27,103	24,049
Global Real Estate & Development
Disaggregation of Revenue
Total revenues	60,416	58,148	181,282	176,784
Global Real Estate & Development \| Sales at Company-operated restaurants
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	0	0	0	0
Global Real Estate & Development \| Franchise royalty revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	0	0	0	0
Global Real Estate & Development \| Franchise fees
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	1,102	581	3,344	3,377
Global Real Estate & Development \| Franchise rental income
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	59,314	57,567	177,938	173,407
Global Real Estate & Development \| Advertising funds revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue
Revenue from Contract with Customer, Excluding Assessed Tax	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0

Revenue Contract Balances (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Dec. 31, 2023
Contract balances
Deferred franchise fees at beginning of period	$ 100,805	$ 99,208
Revenue recognized during the period	(8,873)	(9,016)
New deferrals due to cash received and other	8,822	9,697
Deferred franchise fees at end of period	100,754	$ 99,889
Deferred franchise fees, noncurrent	89,300		$ 90,132
Accounts and notes receivable, net \| Short-term Contract with Customer
Contract balances
Receivables, Net, Current	54,814		55,293
Advertising funds restricted assets \| Short-term Contract with Customer
Contract balances
Receivables, Net, Current	68,354		76,838
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities
Contract balances
Deferred franchise fees, current	11,454		10,673
Deferred franchise fees
Contract balances
Deferred franchise fees, noncurrent	$ 89,300		$ 90,132

Revenue Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees (Details) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024 USD ($)
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees, Amount	$ 100,754
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date: 2024-09-30
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees, Amount	$ 6,427
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Period	3 months
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date: 2024-12-30
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees, Amount	$ 6,685
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Period	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date: 2025-12-29
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees, Amount	$ 6,546
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Period	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date: 2027-01-04
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees, Amount	$ 6,439
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Period	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date: 2028-01-03
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees, Amount	$ 6,320
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Period	1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date: 2029-01-01
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees
Revenue, Anticipated Future Recognition of Deferred Franchise Fees, Amount	$ 68,337
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Period	0 years

System Optimization Gains, Net Summary of Disposition Activity (Details) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024 USD ($) number_of_restaurants	Oct. 01, 2023 USD ($) number_of_restaurants	Sep. 29, 2024 USD ($) number_of_restaurants	Oct. 01, 2023 USD ($) number_of_restaurants
System optimization gains, net
Company-operated restaurant ownership percentage	5.00%		5.00%
Proceeds from sales of restaurants			$ 3,222	$ 280
System optimization gains, net	$ 420	$ 120	$ 573	$ 119
Sale of franchise-operated restaurants to franchisees
System optimization gains, net
Number of restaurants sold to franchisees \| number_of_restaurants			14	88
Sale of Company-Operated Restaurants to Franchisees [Member]
System optimization gains, net
Number of restaurants sold to franchisees \| number_of_restaurants	1	0	1	0
Proceeds from sales of restaurants	$ 834	$ 0	$ 834	$ 0
Net Assets Sold	725	0	725	0
Other gain (loss) on disposition, net	6	0	6	0
Gain (Loss) on Disposition of Assets Before Post Closing Purchase Price Adjustments	115	0	115	0
Post closing adjustments on sales of restaurants	440	537	694	537
System optimization gains, net	555	537	809	537
Sale of other assets
System optimization gains, net
Proceeds from sales of restaurants	1,787		2,388	280
System optimization gains, net	$ (135)	$ (417)	$ (236)	$ (418)

System Optimization Gains, Net Assets Held for Sale (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023
Other assets held for sale
Long lived assets held for sale
Assets held for sale	$ 2,517	$ 2,689

Reorganization and Realignment Costs Summary (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Reorganization and realignment costs	$ 354	$ 611	$ 8,479	$ 8,100
Organizational redesign
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Reorganization and realignment costs	296	579	8,327	7,986
Other reorganization and realignment plans
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Reorganization and realignment costs	$ 58	$ 32	$ 152	$ 114

Reorganization and Realignment Costs Organizational Redesign (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Reorganization and realignment costs	$ 354	$ 611	$ 8,479	$ 8,100
Organizational Redesign
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Restructuring and Related Cost, Incurred Cost	144	427	7,599	6,882
Reorganization and realignment costs	296	579	8,327	7,986
Restructuring and Related Cost, Cost Incurred to Date	15,393		15,393
Restructuring Charges, Incurred to Date	17,391		17,391
Organizational Redesign \| Minimum
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Restructuring and Related Cost, Expected Cost	18,000		18,000
Restructuring and Related Cost, Expected Cost Remaining	800		800
Organizational Redesign \| Severance and related employee costs
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Restructuring and Related Cost, Incurred Cost	12	114	7,322	5,674
Restructuring and Related Cost, Cost Incurred to Date	13,565		13,565
Organizational Redesign \| Recruitment and relocation costs
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Restructuring and Related Cost, Incurred Cost	75	140	157	304
Restructuring and Related Cost, Cost Incurred to Date	711		711
Organizational Redesign \| Third-party and other costs
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Restructuring and Related Cost, Incurred Cost	57	173	120	904
Restructuring and Related Cost, Cost Incurred to Date	1,117		1,117
Organizational Redesign \| Share-based compensation
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Restructuring and Related Cost, Incurred Cost	152	$ 152	728	$ 1,104
Restructuring and Related Cost, Cost Incurred to Date	$ 1,998		$ 1,998

Reorganization and Realignment Costs Organizational Redesign Accrual Rollforward (Details) - Organizational Redesign - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Beginning balance			$ 1,692	$ 0
Charges	$ 144	$ 427	7,599	6,882
Payments			(3,866)	(4,732)
Ending balance	5,425	2,150	5,425	2,150
Severance and related employee costs
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Beginning balance			1,692	0
Charges	12	114	7,322	5,674
Payments			(3,589)	(3,524)
Ending balance	5,425	2,150	5,425	2,150
Recruitment and relocation costs
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Beginning balance			0	0
Charges	75	140	157	304
Payments			(157)	(304)
Ending balance	0	0	0	0
Third-party and other costs
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Beginning balance			0	0
Charges	57	173	120	904
Payments			(120)	(904)
Ending balance	0	0	0	0
Share-based compensation
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Charges	152	$ 152	728	$ 1,104
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Ending balance	4,210		4,210
Other liabilities
Restructuring Cost and Reserve
Ending balance	$ 1,215		$ 1,215

Investments Carrying Value of Investments (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023	Oct. 01, 2023	Jan. 01, 2023
Schedule of Investments
Other investments in equity securities	$ 1,718	$ 1,718
Investments	31,758	34,445
TimWen Investment
Schedule of Investments
Equity method investments	$ 30,040	$ 32,727	$ 32,723	$ 33,921

Investments Equity Method Investments (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Schedule of Equity Method Investments
Foreign currency translation adjustment included in “Other comprehensive income (loss)” and other	$ 4,382	$ (4,533)	$ (2,215)	$ 574
TimWen
Schedule of Equity Method Investments
Equity Method Investment, Ownership Percentage	50.00%		50.00%
Equity Method Investment, Purchase Price Adjustment, Amortization Period			21 years	21 years
TimWen and Brazil JV
Schedule of Equity Method Investments
Balance at beginning of period			$ 32,727	$ 33,921
Equity in earnings for the period			10,493	10,012
Amortization of purchase price adjustments			(1,870)	(2,051)
Equity in earnings for the period, net of amortization of purchase price adjustments			8,623	7,961
Distributions received			(10,678)	(9,310)
Foreign currency translation adjustment included in “Other comprehensive income (loss)” and other			(632)	151
Balance at end of period	$ 30,040	$ 32,723	$ 30,040	$ 32,723

Investments Other Investments in Equity Securities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Investment Income, Net [Abstract]
Investment income (loss), net	$ 0	$ 0	$ 11	$ (10,389)

Fair Value Measurements Financial Instruments (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Other investments in equity securities	$ 1,718	$ 1,718
7% debentures
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt Instrument, Interest Rate, Stated Percentage	7.00%	7.00%
Reported Value Measurement
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Cash equivalents	$ 333,761	$ 365,901
Other investments in equity securities	1,718	1,718
Reported Value Measurement \| Series 2022-1 Class A-2-I Notes
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	97,750	98,500
Reported Value Measurement \| Series 2022-1 Class A-2-II Notes
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	387,134	390,134
Reported Value Measurement \| Series 2021-1 Class A-2-I Notes
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	419,894	423,269
Reported Value Measurement \| Series 2021-1 Class A-2-II Notes
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	628,655	633,530
Reported Value Measurement \| Series 2019-1 Class A-2-I Notes
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	354,673	357,673
Reported Value Measurement \| Series 2019-1 Class A-2-II Notes
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	399,748	403,123
Reported Value Measurement \| Series 2018-1 Class A-2-II Notes
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	437,537	441,099
Reported Value Measurement \| 7% debentures
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	48,744	48,237
Estimate of Fair Value Measurement \| Fair Value, Inputs, Level 1
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Cash equivalents	333,761	365,901
Estimate of Fair Value Measurement \| Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Other investments in equity securities	1,718	1,718
Estimate of Fair Value Measurement \| Series 2022-1 Class A-2-I Notes \| Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	95,635	92,289
Estimate of Fair Value Measurement \| Series 2022-1 Class A-2-II Notes \| Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	367,777	370,577
Estimate of Fair Value Measurement \| Series 2021-1 Class A-2-I Notes \| Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	379,609	362,572
Estimate of Fair Value Measurement \| Series 2021-1 Class A-2-II Notes \| Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	553,411	530,581
Estimate of Fair Value Measurement \| Series 2019-1 Class A-2-I Notes \| Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	348,204	341,606
Estimate of Fair Value Measurement \| Series 2019-1 Class A-2-II Notes \| Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	388,131	374,058
Estimate of Fair Value Measurement \| Series 2018-1 Class A-2-II Notes \| Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	425,767	412,754
Estimate of Fair Value Measurement \| 7% debentures \| Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions
Debt instrument	$ 49,586	$ 49,431

Fair Value Measurements Non-Recurring Fair Value Measurements (Details) - Fair Value, Measurements, Nonrecurring - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Nonrecurring Basis
Assets Held and used, Long Lived, Fair Value Disclosure	$ 2,372	$ 1,212
Assets Held for sale, Long Lived, Fair Value Disclosure	2,241	1,044
Total	4,613	2,256
Fair Value, Inputs, Level 1
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Nonrecurring Basis
Assets Held and used, Long Lived, Fair Value Disclosure	0	0
Assets Held for sale, Long Lived, Fair Value Disclosure	0	0
Total	0	0
Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Nonrecurring Basis
Assets Held and used, Long Lived, Fair Value Disclosure	0	0
Assets Held for sale, Long Lived, Fair Value Disclosure	0	0
Total	0	0
Fair Value, Inputs, Level 3
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Nonrecurring Basis
Assets Held and used, Long Lived, Fair Value Disclosure	2,372	1,212
Assets Held for sale, Long Lived, Fair Value Disclosure	2,241	1,044
Total	$ 4,613	$ 2,256

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets
Impairment of long-lived assets	$ 178	$ 59	$ 2,873	$ 513
Company-operated restaurants
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets
Impairment of long-lived assets	0	0	2,418	428
Surplus properties
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets
Impairment of long-lived assets	$ 178	$ 59	$ 455	$ 85

Income Taxes (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
Income Taxes (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Dec. 31, 2023
Effective Income Tax Rate	27.90%	25.50%	27.30%	25.80%
Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation, at Federal Statutory Income Tax Rate, Percent	21.00%		21.00%
Significant changes to unrecognized tax benefits	$ 0		$ 0
Significant changes to interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits	0		0
Reasonably possible decrease in unrecognized tax benefits	220		220
Income Taxes Receivable, Current	9,307		9,307		$ 5,284
Income Taxes Receivable, Noncurrent	$ 0		$ 0		$ 0

Net Income Per Share (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended						9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Jun. 30, 2024	Mar. 31, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Jul. 02, 2023	Apr. 02, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Net income	$ 50,224	$ 54,643	$ 41,993	$ 58,049	$ 59,632	$ 39,821	$ 146,860	$ 157,502
Weighted average basic shares outstanding	203,264			208,834			204,518	210,668
Dilutive effect of stock options and restricted shares	990			1,768			1,285	2,185
Weighted average diluted shares outstanding	204,254			210,602			205,803	212,853
Basic net income per share	$ 0.25			$ 0.28			$ 0.72	$ 0.75
Diluted net income per share	$ 0.25			$ 0.28			$ 0.71	$ 0.74
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share, Amount	8,605			5,204			7,667	4,719

Stockholders' Equity Dividends (Details) - $ / shares	3 Months Ended
Stockholders' Equity Dividends (Details) - $ / shares	Sep. 29, 2024	Jun. 30, 2024	Mar. 31, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Jul. 02, 2023	Apr. 02, 2023
Common Stock, Dividends, Per Share, Cash Paid	$ 0.25	$ 0.25	$ 0.25	$ 0.25	$ 0.25	$ 0.25

Stockholders' Equity Repurchases of Common Stock (Details) - January 2023 Share Repurchase Program - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	1 Months Ended	9 Months Ended
	Oct. 24, 2024	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Jan. 31, 2023
Equity, Class of Treasury Stock
Stock Repurchase Program, Authorized Amount				$ 500,000
Treasury Stock, Shares, Acquired		3,447	6,730
Treasury Stock, Value, Acquired, Cost Method, excluding Commissions		$ 59,637	$ 144,320
Stock Repurchase Program, Repurchase Accrual		203	2,001
Stock Repurchase Program, Excise Tax Accrual		441	1,293
Stock Repurchase Program, Cost Incurred		49	$ 94
Stock Repurchase Program, Remaining Authorized Repurchase Amount		$ 250,363
Subsequent Event
Equity, Class of Treasury Stock
Treasury Stock, Shares, Acquired	150
Treasury Stock, Value, Acquired, Cost Method, excluding Commissions	$ 2,679

Stockholders' Equity Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended						9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Jun. 30, 2024	Mar. 31, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Jul. 02, 2023	Apr. 02, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss
Balance at beginning of period			$ (58,375)			$ (64,176)	$ (58,375)	$ (64,176)
Foreign currency translation	$ 4,382	$ (2,011)	$ (4,586)	$ (4,533)	$ 4,949	$ 158	(2,215)	574
Balance at end of period	$ (60,590)			$ (63,602)			(60,590)	(63,602)
Foreign Currency Translation
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss
Foreign currency translation							$ (2,215)	$ 574

Leases Lessee Lease Narrative (Details)	Sep. 29, 2024 number_of_restaurants
Lessee, Lease, Description
Number of restaurants	7,292
Land And Building - Company Owned \| Entity Operated Units
Lessee, Lease, Description
Number of restaurants	154
Building - Company Owned; Land - Leased \| Entity Operated Units
Lessee, Lease, Description
Number of restaurants	145
Land And Building - Leased \| Entity Operated Units
Lessee, Lease, Description
Number of restaurants	112
Entity Operated Units, Total [Member] \| Entity Operated Units
Lessee, Lease, Description
Number of restaurants	411

Leases Lessor Lease Narrative (Details)	Sep. 29, 2024 number_of_restaurants
Lessor, Lease, Description
Number of restaurants	7,292
Land And Building - Company Owned \| Franchised Units
Lessor, Lease, Description
Number of restaurants	492
Land And Building - Leased \| Franchised Units
Lessor, Lease, Description
Number of restaurants	1,161
Franchised Units, Other [Member] \| Franchised Units
Lessor, Lease, Description
Number of restaurants	5,228
Franchised Units, Total [Member] \| Franchised Units
Lessor, Lease, Description
Number of restaurants	6,881

Leases Components of Lease Cost (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Lease, Cost
Amortization of finance lease assets	$ 4,779	$ 4,111	$ 13,448	$ 12,232
Interest on finance lease liabilities	10,921	10,664	32,278	32,157
Total finance lease cost	15,700	14,775	45,726	44,389
Operating lease cost	21,496	21,577	64,721	64,455
Variable lease cost	17,087	16,889	50,940	50,489
Short-term lease cost	1,478	1,466	4,098	4,433
Total operating lease cost	40,061	39,932	119,759	119,377
Total lease cost	55,761	54,707	165,485	163,766
Franchise rental expense
Lease, Cost
Total operating lease cost	32,197	31,824	96,270	94,751
Cost of sales
Lease, Cost
Total operating lease cost	7,299	7,570	22,089	22,981
Executory costs paid by lessee
Lease, Cost
Variable lease cost	$ 10,108	$ 9,777	$ 30,362	$ 29,797

Leases Components of Lease Income (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Lessor Lease Income
Sales-type leases, selling profit	$ 67	$ 354	$ 139	$ 1,555
Sales-type and direct-financing leases, interest income	7,110	7,853	22,007	23,583
Operating lease income	41,882	40,567	126,329	123,352
Variable lease income	17,432	17,000	51,609	50,055
Franchise rental income	59,314	57,567	177,938	173,407
Sublease income	43,698	42,545	131,530	128,457
Executory costs paid to lessor
Lessor Lease Income
Sublease income	$ 10,112	$ 9,811	$ 30,356	$ 29,704

Supplemental Cash Flow Information Non-Cash Investing and Financing Activities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Cash Flow, Noncash Investing and Financing Activities Disclosure [Abstract]
Capital expenditures included in accounts payable	$ 10,734	$ 10,856
Finance leases	$ 21,531	$ 13,436

Supplemental Cash Flow Information Reconciliation of Cash, Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023	Oct. 01, 2023	Jan. 01, 2023
Additional Cash Flow Elements and Supplemental Cash Flow Information [Abstract]
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 482,224	$ 516,037
Restricted cash	35,180	35,848
Restricted cash, included in Advertising funds restricted assets	37,125	36,931
Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	$ 554,529	$ 588,816	$ 672,877	$ 831,801

Transactions with Related Parties (Details) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended
Transactions with Related Parties (Details) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024 USD ($) number_of_restaurants	Oct. 01, 2023 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2023 USD ($)
Related Party Transaction
Number of Restaurants \| number_of_restaurants	7,292
Accounts payable	$ 29,047		$ 27,370
TimWen \| Franchise Rental Expense
Related Party Transaction
Operating Costs and Expenses	16,065	$ 15,713
TimWen \| Management Fee Income \| General and administrative
Related Party Transaction
Other Operating Income	179	181
QSCC \| Patronage Dividends
Related Party Transaction
Related Party Transaction, Purchases from Related Party	3,493	363
QSCC \| Patronage Dividends \| Other Operating Income (Expense)
Related Party Transaction
Related Party Transaction, Purchases from Related Party	2,909
QSCC \| Patronage Dividends \| Cost of sales
Related Party Transaction
Related Party Transaction, Purchases from Related Party	584
Yellow Cab \| Royalty, Advertising Fund, Lease and Other Income
Related Party Transaction
Other Operating Income	11,397	11,143
Yellow Cab \| Accounts and notes receivable, net and Advertising funds restricted assets \| Royalty, Advertising Fund, Lease and Other Income
Related Party Transaction
Accounts receivable, net, current	$ 1,099		1,153
Yellow Cab \| Franchised Units
Related Party Transaction
Number of Restaurants \| number_of_restaurants	87
AMC \| Advertising Funds Expense
Related Party Transaction
Related Party Transaction, Purchases from Related Party	$ 1,600	$ 1,800
AMC \| Advertising funds restricted liabilities \| Advertising Funds Expense
Related Party Transaction
Accounts payable	$ 0		$ 584

Guarantees and Other Commitments and Contingencies Lease Guarantees (Details) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024 USD ($)
Property Lease Guarantee
Guarantor Obligations
Guarantor Obligations, Maximum Exposure, Undiscounted	$ 86,450

Guarantees and Other Commitments and Contingencies Letters of Credit (Details) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024 USD ($)
Guarantor Obligations
Letters of Credit Outstanding, Amount	$ 28,673

Guarantees and Other Commitments and Contingencies Beverage & Marketing Agreements (Details) $ in Thousands	Sep. 29, 2024 USD ($)
Beverage & Marketing Agreements [Member]
Long-Term Purchase Commitment [Line Items]
Unrecorded Unconditional Purchase Obligation, Including Lease Not yet Commenced, Total	$ 107,500

Segment Information Reconciliation of Revenue from Segments to Consolidated (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Segment Reporting, Revenue Reconciling Item
Total revenues	$ 566,739	$ 550,555	$ 1,672,219	$ 1,640,927
Wendy's U.S.
Segment Reporting, Revenue Reconciling Item
Total revenues	468,725	457,240	1,384,163	1,366,981
Wendy's International
Segment Reporting, Revenue Reconciling Item
Total revenues	37,598	35,167	106,774	97,162
Global Real Estate & Development
Segment Reporting, Revenue Reconciling Item
Total revenues	$ 60,416	$ 58,148	$ 181,282	$ 176,784

Segment Information Reconciliation of Profit from Segments to Consolidated (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023	Sep. 29, 2024	Oct. 01, 2023
Segment Reporting, Reconciling Item for Profit from Segment to Consolidated
Segment profit	$ 94,675	$ 101,603	$ 275,338	$ 295,355
Unallocated franchise support and other costs	(16,047)	(14,806)	(47,011)	(41,853)
Advertising funds deficit	190	1,088	651	3,509
General and Administrative Expense	(62,794)	(59,288)	(188,047)	(184,306)
Depreciation and amortization (exclusive of amortization of cloud computing arrangements shown separately below)	(36,996)	(34,288)	(110,006)	(101,258)
Amortization of cloud computing arrangements	(3,576)	(3,844)	(10,637)	(7,692)
System optimization gains, net	420	120	573	119
Reorganization and realignment costs	(354)	(611)	(8,479)	(8,100)
Impairment of long-lived assets	(178)	(59)	(2,873)	(513)
Unallocated other operating income, net	5,068	3,117	11,564	9,174
Interest expense, net	(31,270)	(30,957)	(92,800)	(93,798)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt	0	(319)	0	(1,585)
Investment income (loss), net	0	0	11	(10,389)
Other income, net	6,246	7,637	19,382	22,546
Income before income taxes	69,651	77,964	201,931	212,129
Corporate and Other
Segment Reporting, Reconciling Item for Profit from Segment to Consolidated
Unallocated franchise support and other costs	(900)	(29)	(1,117)	(6)
General and Administrative Expense	(32,443)	(30,962)	(98,289)	(96,776)
Unallocated other operating income, net	439	52	1,301	180
Operating Segments
Segment Reporting, Reconciling Item for Profit from Segment to Consolidated
Segment profit	168,073	170,136	504,214	505,892
Operating Segments \| Wendy's U.S.
Segment Reporting, Reconciling Item for Profit from Segment to Consolidated
Segment profit	129,790	134,887	392,323	403,064
Advertising funds deficit	(5,977)		(13,386)
Operating Segments \| Wendy's International
Segment Reporting, Reconciling Item for Profit from Segment to Consolidated
Segment profit	11,046	10,831	32,411	26,808
Advertising funds deficit	(622)	(596)	(1,387)	(1,802)
Other international-related advertising deficit	(170)	535	(640)	(789)
Operating Segments \| Global Real Estate & Development
Segment Reporting, Reconciling Item for Profit from Segment to Consolidated
Segment profit	$ 27,237	$ 24,418	$ 79,480	$ 76,020

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