First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG) shares gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday after Citigroup lowered their price target on the stock from $26.00 to $21.00. The stock had previously closed at $15.50, but opened at $13.64. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the stock. First Watch Restaurant Group shares last traded at $13.5940, with a volume of 1,349,155 shares trading hands.

FWRG has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $19.00 price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded First Watch Restaurant Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Stephens dropped their target price on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $24.00 to $21.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Guggenheim reduced their target price on First Watch Restaurant Group from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on First Watch Restaurant Group from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Watch Restaurant Group news, Director William A. Kussell sold 6,165 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.00, for a total transaction of $104,805.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 26,402 shares in the company, valued at $448,834. The trade was a 18.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 6.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Key Stories Impacting First Watch Restaurant Group

Here are the key news stories impacting First Watch Restaurant Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 reported EPS beat expectations and revenue grew year‑over‑year, signaling underlying sales momentum and an improving earnings line. Q4 Earnings Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Management set a 2026 revenue growth target of 12%–14% and plans to expand digital marketing and menu innovation, initiatives that could support top‑line expansion and drive traffic over the year ahead. Management Guidance & Initiatives
• Positive Sentiment: Management will participate in three investor conferences in March, increasing investor access and giving more opportunities for management to expand on strategy and guidance. Investor Conferences
• Neutral Sentiment: Quarterly sales were reported in line with estimates (a modest revenue miss vs. some models), leaving mixed signals between accelerating top‑line and near‑term comps. Sales In Line With Estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Several brokerages trimmed price targets (Citigroup, Guggenheim, Stephens, Barclays) but many kept buy/overweight ratings — a signal that analysts see upside over time but are dialing back near‑term expectations. Analyst Price‑Target Changes
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst commentary flagged FY‑2026 guidance as disappointing: same‑store sales are expected to decelerate to ~1–3% and adjusted EBITDA margin guidance implies limited operational leverage — reducing near‑term upside and leaving valuation looking stretched. Seeking Alpha Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: The cautious guidance and mixed results triggered a sharp intraday selloff after the report, reflecting investor concern about margin trajectory and slower comps even as the company pursues growth initiatives. Market Reaction

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Watch Restaurant Group

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FWRG. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 67.3% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 54,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $903,000 after acquiring an additional 21,830 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 31.8% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 22,766 shares of the company’s stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 5,497 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group by 76.1% in the second quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $368,000 after acquiring an additional 9,920 shares in the last quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC bought a new position in First Watch Restaurant Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $6,173,000. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group by 12.2% during the 2nd quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 76,861 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,233,000 after acquiring an additional 8,358 shares in the last quarter. 96.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Watch Restaurant Group Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $811.85 million, a P/E ratio of 42.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.88. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $15.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.16. First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 3.23% and a net margin of 1.59%.The business had revenue of $316.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $317.49 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.01 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current year.

About First Watch Restaurant Group

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc (NASDAQ: FWRG) operates a specialty daytime dining concept focused on breakfast, brunch and lunch. The company’s casual, full-service cafés emphasize fresh ingredients, made-to-order entrées and a seasonally driven menu that ranges from omelets and Benedicts to salads, skillets and afternoon sandwiches. First Watch positions itself as a daytime-only destination, with most locations opening early morning and closing by mid-afternoon.

Founded in 1983 by Ken Pendery and John Sullivan in Pacific Grove, California, First Watch began as a single café and gradually expanded through company-owned and select franchised locations.