The Wendy’s Company is reallocating capital toward a broad turnaround effort after its U.S. restaurant count declined by a net 81 locations during the second quarter of 2026 and domestic same-restaurant sales fell 7%.
Wendy’s opened 21 U.S. restaurants during Q2 but reported 81 net closures, leaving 5,724 U.S. restaurants at the end of the quarter compared with 5,967 a year earlier. Internationally, Wendy’s opened 27 restaurants and added 10 on a net basis, bringing its international count to 1,456.
U.S. systemwide sales declined 8.2% to approximately $2.88 billion, while U.S. same-restaurant sales fell 7%. International systemwide sales increased 3.4% despite a 2.3% decline in international same-restaurant sales. Global systemwide sales declined 6.5% to approximately $3.42 billion.
The weak operating performance prompted Wendy’s new leadership to withdraw its 2026 financial outlook while it completes a comprehensive assessment of the business and determines how to deploy capital across the turnaround.
Wendy’s also sharply reduced its dividend to preserve financial flexibility. The new annualized dividend rate is $0.28 per share, with a quarterly dividend of $0.07 per share.
Management has identified five priorities for the turnaround: rebuilding the menu around quality and value, improving demand-generating marketing, strengthening operational execution, building a digital experience that increases customer frequency, and using restaurants themselves as an engine for future growth.
Wendy’s generated Q2 revenue of approximately $571 million, net income of $32.6 million and Adjusted EBITDA of $124.1 million. First-half free cash flow reached $120.3 million.
KEY QUOTES:
“Wendy’s is an iconic brand with exceptional assets. Today we are clearly not performing at our potential. I returned to Wendy’s because I believe we can fix our issues and I am excited to work with our team and our franchisees to drive a strong turnaround.”
“Our traffic, our value proposition and franchisee economics are not meeting our expectations.”
Bob Wright, President and CEO of The Wendy’s Company
