Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) Reaches New 12-Month Low – What’s Next?

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) shares hit a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $110.44 and last traded at $111.36, with a volume of 1271494 shares. The stock had previously closed at $117.52.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WING. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Wingstop from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $220.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Wingstop from $255.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Wingstop in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Wingstop from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Wingstop from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Wingstop has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $241.81.

Wingstop Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $3.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.05, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.81. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $146.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $177.83.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. Wingstop had a negative return on equity of 16.31% and a net margin of 16.15%.The firm had revenue of $185.56 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $190.25 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.00 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Wingstop Inc. will post 4.5 EPS for the current year.

Wingstop Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, August 15th will be paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from Wingstop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio is 28.50%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WING. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Wingstop in the 2nd quarter valued at about $481,314,000. Steadfast Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of Wingstop by 296.2% in the third quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 950,521 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $239,227,000 after acquiring an additional 710,621 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Wingstop during the second quarter worth approximately $80,456,000. Atreides Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Wingstop during the fourth quarter worth approximately $93,012,000. Finally, Wasatch Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of Wingstop during the second quarter valued at approximately $114,758,000.

Wingstop Company Profile

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.