Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) Trading Down 6.4% – Should You Sell?

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) fell 6.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $108.10 and last traded at $107.3340. 163,846 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 1,161,886 shares. The stock had previously closed at $114.71.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Wingstop from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Wingstop from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Wingstop from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $220.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Wingstop from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, BTIG Research lowered their target price on shares of Wingstop from $305.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $240.33.

Wingstop Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $125.81 and a 200-day moving average of $155.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.79.

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

Wingstop Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This is a positive change from Wingstop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Wingstop’s payout ratio is presently 31.35%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wingstop

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Wingstop during the second quarter worth $246,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its stake in Wingstop by 48.7% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 2,235 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $388,000 after acquiring an additional 732 shares during the last quarter. Darsana Capital Partners LP grew its position in shares of Wingstop by 20.0% in the 2nd quarter. Darsana Capital Partners LP now owns 1,500,000 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $260,115,000 after acquiring an additional 250,000 shares during the period. Nykredit A S acquired a new position in shares of Wingstop during the 2nd quarter worth about $152,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LP raised its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 43.5% in the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 1,965 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $341,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the period.

Wingstop Company Profile

Wingstop Inc is a fast-casual restaurant company specializing in cooked-to-order chicken wings and tenders. Its menu also includes fries, seasoned fries, dipping sauces, and beverages, with offerings built around a range of signature flavors and sauces. The company primarily operates through a franchise-based model.

Wingstop was founded in 1994 in Garland, Texas, and has expanded from its original location into a global restaurant brand. Its restaurants serve customers across the United States and in international markets through a network of franchised and company-operated locations.

Wingstop became a publicly traded company in 2015.