Manatuck Hill Partners LLC Grows Stock Holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. $FWRG

Key Points

• Manatuck Hill Partners LLC increased its stake in First Watch Restaurant Group by 55.9% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 459,900 shares worth about $6.9 million.
• First Watch Restaurant Group reported quarterly EPS of ($0.04), missing expectations, while revenue came in at $330.96 million and rose 17.3% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mostly positive, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $19.27, though some firms recently lowered their targets.

Manatuck Hill Partners LLC raised its position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG - Free Report) by 55.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 459,900 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 164,900 shares during the period. First Watch Restaurant Group comprises about 2.4% of Manatuck Hill Partners LLC's holdings, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Manatuck Hill Partners LLC owned about 0.75% of First Watch Restaurant Group worth $6,935,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FWRG. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,320,929 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,080,000 after acquiring an additional 432,634 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,576,182 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,849,000 after acquiring an additional 133,402 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake 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 valued at $37,468,000 after acquiring an additional 796,191 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $36,589,000 after acquiring an additional 269,726 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $30,653,000 after acquiring an additional 311,938 shares in the last quarter. 96.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Watch Restaurant Group Stock Down 1.0%

First Watch Restaurant Group stock opened at $11.48 on Thursday. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $9.97 and a 1-year high of $19.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market cap of $707.74 million, a PE ratio of 41.00, a P/E/G ratio of 6.00 and a beta of 1.06. The stock's fifty day moving average is $11.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $13.76.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $330.96 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $329.35 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.01) earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. will post 0.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays reduced their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Weiss Ratings cut First Watch Restaurant Group from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $17.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Benchmark reduced their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $19.27.

About First Watch Restaurant Group

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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