周三开盘时，温迪汉堡（Wendy’s）股价飙升 15%，此前知名投资者纳尔逊·佩尔茨（Nelson Peltz）提出收购这家连锁店，后者一直受高昂牛肉价格和门店老化的困扰。
Wendy’s shares jumped 15% at the opening bell Wednesday after noted investor Nelson Peltz made an offer to buy the chain, which has been struggling with high beef prices and aging stores.
佩尔茨旗下的特里安基金管理公司（Trian Fund Management）及数家合作伙伴提出，以每股 7.35 美元现金收购温迪汉堡，较周二收盘价溢价近 19%，该交易将使公司私有化。
Peltz’s Trian Fund Management and several partners are offering Wendy’s $7.35 per share in cash, or a premium of nearly 19% over the stock’s closing price on Tuesday, in a deal that would take the company private.
总部位于俄亥俄州都柏林的温迪汉堡周三拒绝置评。截至去年底，温迪汉堡在美国拥有 5969 家餐厅，在 38 个国家拥有 1428 家门店。
Wendy's, which is based in Dublin, Ohio, declined to comment Wednesday. At the end of last year, Wendy's had 5,969 restaurants in the U.S. and 1,428 outlets in 38 countries.
温迪汉堡由戴夫·托马斯（Dave Thomas）于 1969 年创立，以其女儿命名，因方形汉堡和 Frosty 冰淇淋闻名。这家快速扩张的连锁店于 1970 年推出汽车穿梭点餐窗口，1976 年上市。20 世纪 80 年代，随着它与麦当劳、汉堡王争夺销量，温迪汉堡推出沙拉吧，并推出了标志性的“牛肉在哪里？”广告活动。
Wendy's, founded in 1969 by Dave Thomas and named after his daughter, is known for its square burgers and Frosty desserts. The fast-growing chain introduced the drive-thru window in 1970 and went public in 1976. In the 1980s, as it jockeyed for sales with McDonald's and Burger King, Wendy's launched salad bars and ran its iconic “Where's the beef?” ad campaign.
但随着快餐市场竞争更加激烈，In-N-Out 和 Five Guys 等竞争对手汉堡连锁店不断扩张，温迪汉堡落后了。市场研究公司 Technomic 数据显示，温迪汉堡在美国汉堡连锁店销售额中的份额从 2019 年的 11.5% 下降至去年的 10.4%。
But as the fast-food market grew even more competitive and rival burger-focused chains like In-N-Out and Five Guys expanded, Wendy's fell behind. Wendy's share of U.S. burger chain sales fell from 11.5% in 2019 to 10.4% last year, according to Technomic, a market research company.
近年来，通胀也冲击了温迪汉堡和其他美国快餐连锁店，它们因提价应对不断上涨的人工、食品和包装成本，导致低收入消费者光顾减少。
In recent years, inflation has also hurt Wendy's and other U.S. fast-food chains, who have seen traffic from lower-income consumers fall as they raised prices to combat rising labor, food and packaging costs.
温迪汉堡一直在关闭美国过时的餐厅，以便专注于更有利可图的门店。该公司 2024 年关闭了 240 家餐厅，并表示今年早些时候计划最多关闭 358 家门店。
Wendy's has been closing outdated U.S. restaurants so it can focus on its more profitable locations. The company closed 240 restaurants in 2024 and said earlier this year that it planned to shutter up to 358 locations this year.
随后，上个月，温迪汉堡最大的美国特许经营商之一在该连锁店试图终止其特许经营协议后申请破产保护。总部位于密歇根州的 Meritage Hospitality Group 在 15 个州经营着 314 家温迪汉堡餐厅。
Then, last month, one of the largest U.S. franchisees for Wendy’s filed for bankruptcy protection after the chain tried to terminate its franchise agreement. Michigan-based Meritage Hospitality Group operates 314 Wendy’s restaurants in 15 states.
在致公司董事会的一封信中，佩尔茨表示，私有化“将为更广泛的利益相关者群体带来最佳结果”。
In a letter to the company’s board of directors, Peltz said going private “will deliver the best outcome for the broader stakeholder base.”
佩尔茨写道：“温迪正处于关键十字路口。鉴于美国消费者面临巨大压力、经济不确定性、大宗商品通胀持续以及竞争加剧，尤其是在快餐汉堡品类内部，外部环境变得日益严峻。”佩尔茨曾投资过宝洁、迪士尼、杜邦等公司。根据周三提交的一份监管文件，特里安在温迪的持股总计为16.3%。
“Wendy’s sits at a critical juncture," Peltz wrote. "The external environment has become increasingly challenging given the significant pressures on the U.S. consumer, economic uncertainty, persistent commodity inflation and intensifying competition, particularly within the QSR (quick service restaurant) burger category." Peltz has invested in companies from Procter & Gamble and Disney to DuPont. According to a regulatory document filed Wednesday, Trian’s stake in Wendy’s totals 16.3%.
据TD Cowen分析师安德鲁·查尔斯称，佩尔茨曾在2022年考虑对温迪发起私有化收购，但于2023年1月告知公司，鉴于其业务势头有所改善，他决定放弃该计划。
Peltz considered a take-private bid for Wendy's in 2022 but told the company in January 2023 that he had decided against it, citing its improved business momentum, according to TD Cowen analyst Andrew Charles.
查尔斯表示，预计将成立一个独立特别委员会来评估该提议，双方已签署保密协议。
Charles said an independent special committee is expected to evaluate the proposal and both parties have entered into a confidentiality arrangement.
查尔斯周三在致投资者的报告中写道：“我们认为，私有化合情合理，因为考虑到低收入消费者状况不佳以及快餐汉堡品类疲软，温迪的扭亏为盈过程可能会延长。”
“In our view, a take-private makes sense as Wendy’s turnaround is likely to be prolonged given the challenged state of the lower-income consumer and soft state of the quick service burger category,” Charles wrote Wednesday in a note to investors.
温迪定于下周发布季度财报。据FactSet数据，分析师预计公司每股收益将达9美分，销售额为5.31亿美元。
Wendy's is scheduled to report its quarterly financial results next week. Analysts expect the company to post earnings of 9 cents per share on sales of $531 million, according to FactSet.
周三股价上涨88美分，报收于7.01美元。今年以来股价已下跌26%。
Shares rose 88 cents to $7.01 Wednesday. They have fallen 26% since the start of this year.