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Dominick Reuter
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- Wendy's says it plans to close hundreds of US locations.
- The burger chain is struggling with declining sales.
- While its international sales are growing, its stock is down nearly 50% from last year.
Wendy's US operations are melting like one of the chain's trademark Frosties on a hot summer day.
The burger giant said Friday it plans to close as many as 350 US locations amid declining sales and profitability. Full-year, system-wide US sales fell 5.2% in 2025, with same-restaurant sales down 5.6% year over year.
"We're executing Project Fresh with urgency to strengthen our foundation and position Wendy's for long-term success," interim CEO Ken Cook said in a statement, referring to the company's turnaround plan.
Wendy's initially announced a plan to close hundreds of locations back in November. Since then, closures have outpaced openings. The company said that it now has about 6,000 US locations and plans to shutter 5% to 6% of those during the first half of 2026.
The coming closures follow a raft of several hundred closures last year of locations that the company said were technologically outdated.
In contrast to its domestic challenges, Wendy's international sales are growing, with systemwide sales up 8.1% and same-restaurant sales up 1.3% year over year.
Wall Street shrugged off Friday's earnings report, but Wendy's stock price is down about 8.5% so far in 2026 and nearly 50% compared to a year ago.
