The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Takes $49.29 Million Position in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. $FWRG

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 3,823,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,291,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.06% of First Watch Restaurant Group at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in First Watch Restaurant Group by 1.6% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 45,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $730,000 after buying an additional 724 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 46,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $695,000 after buying an additional 832 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 4.7% in the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 25,654 shares of the company’s stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 1,154 shares during the period. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS increased its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 0.5% in the first quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 310,837 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,258,000 after buying an additional 1,450 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 16,041 shares of the company’s stock valued at $242,000 after acquiring an additional 1,606 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.11% of the company’s stock.

First Watch Restaurant Group Price Performance

FWRG stock opened at $12.89 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $795.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.45, a PEG ratio of 21.65 and a beta of 1.03. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $12.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $9.97 and a 12-month high of $19.39.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $354.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $351.57 million. First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 2.85% and a net margin of 1.35%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. will post 0.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FWRG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Guggenheim dropped their target price on First Watch Restaurant Group from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 7th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $21.00 price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen raised First Watch Restaurant Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $14.00 target price on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.56.

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.