Wendy's shares surge as retail traders pile in

Wendy's shares rose sharply on Wednesday after a wave of retail buying pushed the stock higher and briefly halted trading for volatility. The stock climbed more than 42% intraday before closing up 25.7% at $7.86. The move came after Wendy's announced that former Potbelly executive Steven Cirulis would become chief financial officer and chief strategy officer. However, the size of the rally suggested that social media trading activity played a bigger role than the executive hire alone. Market data firms said Wendy's became one of the most discussed stocks on Reddit trading forums, with posts framing the company as a turnaround play. Analysts also noted that about 23% of the company's free float is sold short, which can make a stock more vulnerable to a short squeeze if the price keeps rising.