Hodges Capital Management Inc. Buys 550,407 Shares of First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. $FWRG

Key Points

• Hodges Capital Management increased its stake in First Watch Restaurant Group by 385.1% in the fourth quarter, buying 550,407 additional shares and lifting its total holding to 693,341 shares, worth about $10.5 million.
• Institutional interest remains high, with major holders like Vanguard, Dimensional Fund Advisors, and others also adding shares; institutions now own 96.11% of the company.
• First Watch reported quarterly revenue of $330.96 million, up 17.3% year over year, but EPS of -$0.04 missed estimates. Analysts remain generally bullish, with an average rating of Moderate Buy and a target price of $19.27.

Hodges Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG - Free Report) by 385.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 693,341 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 550,407 shares during the period. Hodges Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 1.14% of First Watch Restaurant Group worth $10,456,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,320,929 shares of the company's stock worth $50,080,000 after purchasing an additional 432,634 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,442,780 shares of the company's stock worth $38,206,000 after purchasing an additional 69,415 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 51.7% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,335,883 shares of the company's stock worth $37,468,000 after acquiring an additional 796,191 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 13.4% in the second quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,281,137 shares of the company's stock worth $36,589,000 after acquiring an additional 269,726 shares during the period. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 2,032,631 shares of the company's stock worth $30,653,000 after acquiring an additional 311,938 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.11% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Watch Restaurant Group news, insider Matthew Eisenacher sold 2,760 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total transaction of $34,555.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 67,223 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $841,631.96. The trade was a 3.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO H Melville Hope III sold 3,878 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total value of $48,552.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 111,787 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,399,573.24. This represents a 3.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 38,255 shares of company stock worth $478,953. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

First Watch Restaurant Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FWRG opened at $10.98 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.97. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $9.97 and a 52-week high of $19.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $676.92 million, a PE ratio of 39.22, a P/E/G ratio of 5.31 and a beta of 1.06.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.02). First Watch Restaurant Group had a net margin of 1.38% and a return on equity of 2.85%. The company had revenue of $330.96 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $329.35 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.01) EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. will post 0.2 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on FWRG shares. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $17.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Benchmark cut their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 20th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $21.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $19.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $14.00 price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $19.27.

First Watch Restaurant Group Company Profile

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc NASDAQ: FWRG operates a specialty daytime dining concept focused on breakfast, brunch and lunch. The company's casual, full-service cafés emphasize fresh ingredients, made-to-order entrées and a seasonally driven menu that ranges from omelets and Benedicts to salads, skillets and afternoon sandwiches. First Watch positions itself as a daytime-only destination, with most locations opening early morning and closing by mid-afternoon.

Founded in 1983 by Ken Pendery and John Sullivan in Pacific Grove, California, First Watch began as a single café and gradually expanded through company-owned and select franchised locations.

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