Rice Hall James & Associates LLC Buys New Stake in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. $FWRG

Key Points

• Rice Hall James & Associates initiated a 138,372-share position in First Watch Restaurant Group worth approximately $1.78 million, representing about 0.22% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 96.11% of FWRG.
• Analysts remain generally positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $18.56, despite Guggenheim and Citigroup lowering their targets to $20.
• First Watch reported quarterly revenue of $354.67 million, up 15.2% year over year and above estimates, but earnings per share of $0.04 missed consensus by $0.01. The stock opened at $12.01 and has traded between $9.97 and $19.53 over the past year.

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 138,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,784,000. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC owned approximately 0.22% of First Watch Restaurant Group at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in the fourth quarter worth $63,000. State of Wyoming bought a new position in First Watch Restaurant Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $64,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in First Watch Restaurant Group in the fourth quarter worth $66,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 61.9% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,375 shares of the company's stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 1,673 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 17,042.4% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 5,657 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 5,624 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.11% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on FWRG. Guggenheim decreased their target price on First Watch Restaurant Group from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $17.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $21.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Watch Restaurant Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $18.56.

First Watch Restaurant Group Stock Performance

First Watch Restaurant Group stock opened at $12.01 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $12.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.54. The stock has a market cap of $741.16 million, a PE ratio of 41.42, a P/E/G ratio of 21.20 and a beta of 1.03. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $9.97 and a 12-month high of $19.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.01). First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 2.85% and a net margin of 1.35%.The business had revenue of $354.67 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $351.57 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.03 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. will post 0.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source