First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. $FWRG Shares Sold by Deepwater Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Deepwater Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in First Watch Restaurant Group by 13.6%, selling 107,131 shares during the first quarter, bringing its total ownership to 681,339 shares.
• First Watch has seen significant activity among institutional investors, with ownership now at 96.11%, highlighting the stock's attractiveness to large investment firms.
• Despite earnings per share of $0.03 for the last quarter missing estimates, First Watch's revenue increased 19.1% year-over-year, totaling $307.89 million.

Deepwater Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG - Free Report) by 13.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 681,339 shares of the company's stock after selling 107,131 shares during the period. First Watch Restaurant Group comprises 4.8% of Deepwater Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Deepwater Asset Management LLC owned about 1.12% of First Watch Restaurant Group worth $11,344,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. purchased a new stake in First Watch Restaurant Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $259,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 272.0% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 56,466 shares of the company's stock valued at $940,000 after acquiring an additional 41,289 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 203.6% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 238,661 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,974,000 after acquiring an additional 160,040 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 2.2% in the first quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 708,663 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,799,000 after acquiring an additional 15,304 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 85.2% in the first quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,807 shares of the company's stock valued at $163,000 after acquiring an additional 4,512 shares in the last quarter. 96.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on FWRG. TD Securities restated a "buy" rating and issued a $19.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $17.00 price target on First Watch Restaurant Group in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Zacks Research raised First Watch Restaurant Group to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $21.09.

First Watch Restaurant Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FWRG traded up $0.15 on Wednesday, hitting $17.43. 794,662 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,308,311. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $12.90 and a 1-year high of $22.71. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $16.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $17.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 290.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.91.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.07 by ($0.04). First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 0.69% and a net margin of 0.37%.The company had revenue of $307.89 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $304.94 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.14 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 19.1% on a year-over-year basis. First Watch Restaurant Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at First Watch Restaurant Group

In other First Watch Restaurant Group news, major shareholder International L.P. Advent sold 5,000,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.70, for a total transaction of $88,500,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,689,784 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $171,509,176.80. This trade represents a 34.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 6.00% of the company's stock.

About First Watch Restaurant Group

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates and franchises restaurants under the First Watch trade name in the United States. The company was formerly known as AI Fresh Super Holdco, Inc and changed its name to First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc in December 2019. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc was founded in 1983 and is based in Bradenton, Florida.