Sifting through countless of stocks in the Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. or The Wendy's Company because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. and The Wendy's Company compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. and The Wendy's Company

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. operates as a franchisee of McDonald’s restaurants. It has the exclusive right to own, operate, and grant franchises of McDonald’s restaurants in 21 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean, including Argentina, Aruba, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Curacao, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, the U.S. Virgin Islands of St. Croix and St. Thomas, and Venezuela. Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. was founded in 2007 and is based in Montevideo, Uruguay.

The Wendy's Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the operation, development, and franchising of a system of quick-service restaurants in the United States and internationally. The company operates through the Wendy’s U.S., Wendy’s International, and Global Real Estate & Development segments. Its restaurants offer a menu that includes hamburger sandwiches and chicken sandwiches; chicken tenders and nuggets, chili, french fries, baked potatoes, salads, soft drinks, Frosty desserts, and kids’ meals; breakfast menu, including the Breakfast Baconator sandwich and seasoned products; and a variety of promotional products on a limited time basis. The company also owns and leases real estate properties. As of December 28, 2025, there were 5,969 Wendy’s restaurants in operation in the United States and 1,428 Wendy’s restaurants in operation in 38 foreign countries and U.S. territories. The company was formerly known as Wendy's/Arby's Group, Inc. and changed its name to The Wendy’s Company in July 2011. The Wendy's Company was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ohio.

Latest Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure and Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc., The Wendy's Company Stock News

As of September 2, 2026, Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. had a $1.7 billion market capitalization, compared to the Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure median of $2.2 million. Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc.’s stock is up 11.9% in 2026, up 2.5% in the previous five trading days and up 18.47% in the past year.

Currently, Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 6.7. Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $5.0 billion with a 5.2% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 14.3%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $0.803 per share for the current fiscal year. Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. currently has a 3.4% dividend yield.

As of September 2, 2026, The Wendy's Company had a $1.6 billion market cap, putting it in the 50th percentile of all stocks. The Wendy's Company’s stock is down 1.1% in 2026, down 8.8% in the previous five trading days and down 19.77% in the past year.

Currently, The Wendy's Company’s price-earnings ratio is 12.5. The Wendy's Company’s trailing 12-month revenue is $2.2 billion with a 5.7% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 1.7%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $0.505 per share for the current fiscal year. The Wendy's Company currently has a 3.4% dividend yield.

How We Compare Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. and The Wendy's Company Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. and The Wendy's Company’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. and The Wendy's Company Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc.	ARCO	A
The Wendy's Company	WEN	B

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. has a Growth Score of 89, which is Very Strong. The Wendy's Company has a Growth Score of 73, which is Strong.

The Growth Grade Winner: Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Growth Grade breakdown above, Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. has a more attractive growth grade than The Wendy's Company. For investors who focus solely on how a company is growing relative to other companies in the same industry, Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. and The Wendy's Company’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc.	ARCO	B
The Wendy's Company	WEN	B

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. has a Quality Score of 63, which is Strong. The Wendy's Company has a Quality Score of 67, which is Strong.

The Quality Grade Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Quality Grade breakdown above, both Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. and The Wendy's Company have a grade of B. For investors who focus solely on a company’s overall quality, you will need to conduct further research into both companies to see if they are a good fit for your portfolio. As a good rule of thumb, you should always analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before choosing a company to invest in.

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. and The Wendy's Company’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc.	ARCO	B
The Wendy's Company	WEN	D

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 70, which is Positive. The Wendy's Company has a Earnings Estimate Score of 33, which is Negative.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade Winner: Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade breakdown above, Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. has a better Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade than The Wendy's Company. For those who are specifically looking for companies with better short-term prospects when compared to other companies in the same industry, Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Other Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. and The Wendy's Company Grades

In addition to Estimate Revisions, Growth and Quality, A+ Investor also provides grades for Value and Momentum.

Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection. Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. and The Wendy's Company pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. or The Wendy's Company Stock?

Overall, Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 89, Estimate Revisions Score of 70 and Quality Score of 63.

The Wendy's Company stock has a Growth Score of 73, Estimate Revisions Score of 33 and Quality Score of 67.

Comparing Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. and The Wendy's Company’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.