Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) Stock Price Down 8.1% – Here’s Why

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING)’s stock price fell 8.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $135.77 and last traded at $138.78. 124,496 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 1,144,370 shares. The stock had previously closed at $151.00.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Wingstop from $230.00 to $229.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Truist Financial set a $374.00 price target on shares of Wingstop and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on shares of Wingstop in a research report on Monday, March 30th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $275.00 price objective on the stock. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of Wingstop from $255.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Wingstop in a research report on Monday, March 9th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $320.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $277.68.

Wingstop Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.47, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.82. The business’s 50 day moving average is $159.51 and its 200 day moving average is $218.25.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $183.73 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $187.82 million. Wingstop had a net margin of 15.77% and a negative return on equity of 16.22%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.99 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Wingstop Inc. will post 4.59 EPS for the current year.

Wingstop Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.85%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wingstop

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Wingstop by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,111,089 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $503,475,000 after buying an additional 58,386 shares during the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Wingstop during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $375,317,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 48.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,405,894 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $335,292,000 after acquiring an additional 456,861 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,173,613 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $279,895,000 after acquiring an additional 70,224 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Steadfast Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Wingstop by 296.2% in the third quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 950,521 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $239,227,000 after acquiring an additional 710,621 shares during the period.

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.