Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) Trading Up 6.6% – Here’s Why

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING)’s stock price rose 6.6% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $119.03 and last traded at $116.8370. Approximately 258,123 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average daily volume of 1,163,410 shares. The stock had previously closed at $109.60.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on WING. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Wingstop in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Wingstop from $280.00 to $240.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Wingstop to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Wingstop from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Wingstop from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $220.00 to $155.00 in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given 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 an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $241.81.

Wingstop Stock Up 6.6%

The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $136.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $163.70. The stock has a market cap of $3.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.79.

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

Wingstop Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This is an increase from Wingstop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.35%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wingstop

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Corient Private Wealth LP increased its position in shares of Wingstop by 43.5% in the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 1,965 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $341,000 after acquiring an additional 596 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in shares of Wingstop during the second quarter worth about $319,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 16,825.6% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 5,475,941 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $949,583,000 after purchasing an additional 5,443,588 shares during the period. AlphaGrep UK Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Wingstop in the second quarter worth about $338,000. Finally, Nykredit A S bought a new stake in shares of Wingstop in the second quarter worth about $152,000.

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.