117,466 Shares in Wingstop Inc. $WING Acquired by Man Group plc

Man Group plc acquired a new stake in Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 117,466 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $20,370,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WING. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Wingstop by 76.9% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 138 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of Wingstop in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Wingstop by 75.7% in the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 188 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wingstop in the 2nd quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Wingstop by 121.4% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 217 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter.

Wingstop Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of WING stock opened at $112.24 on Thursday. Wingstop Inc. has a 12-month low of $110.44 and a 12-month high of $342.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.81. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $140.06 and a 200-day moving average of $167.97.

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

Wingstop Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, August 15th will be issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from Wingstop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Wingstop from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on Wingstop from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. BTIG Research reduced their target price on Wingstop from $305.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Wingstop in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Wingstop from $330.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Wingstop has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $241.81.

Wingstop 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.