Wendy’s International, Inc. today announced that its board of directors has confirmed its intent to spin off to current Wendy’sshareholders the 160.0 million shares of Tim Hortons Inc. that the company currently owns. The shares represent an 82.75 percent ownership stake in Tim Hortons(R).

Tim Hortons issued 17.25 percent of its shares in March 2006 in an initial public offering (IPO). The company is now targeting October 1, 2006, to complete the Tim Hortons spin-off, assuming it has received from the IRS a ruling on the tax-free status of the distribution by that time.

“The board’s unanimous decision to spin off the remaining shares of Tim Hortons confirms the commitment that we initially made to shareholders in our July 29, 2005, announcement of the IPO and that we reiterated during the Tim Hortons road show in March,” said Wendy’s Chairman Jim Pickett.