Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-four brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $337.2857.

Several brokerages recently commented on WING. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Wingstop from $320.00 to $310.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 9th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Wingstop in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Wingstop from $363.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Wingstop from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $375.00 price target on shares of Wingstop in a research note on Thursday, February 19th.

Wingstop Stock Down 6.1%

NASDAQ WING opened at $172.07 on Friday. Wingstop has a 52 week low of $168.97 and a 52 week high of $388.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.84, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.82. The company has a fifty day moving average of $244.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $249.63.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $175.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $177.74 million. Wingstop had a net margin of 25.01% and a negative return on equity of 16.12%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.92 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Wingstop will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Wingstop Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.42%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kilandigalu Madati sold 2,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.73, for a total transaction of $703,971.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $673,465.59. The trade was a 51.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Wesley S. Mcdonald sold 566 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $141,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,093,750. The trade was a 11.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wingstop

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vident Advisory LLC grew its stake in Wingstop by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 959 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in Wingstop by 17.3% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 265 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership raised its position in Wingstop by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 426 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 997 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $336,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,628 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $627,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period.

About Wingstop

Wingstop Inc (NASDAQ: WING) is a fast-casual restaurant chain specializing in chicken wings and related menu items. Founded in 1994 in Garland, Texas, the company has built its brand around bold, chef-inspired wing flavors and a streamlined service model that caters to dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering orders.

The company’s core offerings include both bone-in and boneless chicken wings tossed in a variety of proprietary rubs and sauces, such as Original Hot, Lemon Pepper, and Mango Habanero.