Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) Stock Holdings Reduced by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its position in Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING - Free Report) by 3.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,772,130 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 101,685 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 9.93% of Wingstop worth $625,337,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WING. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new position in Wingstop in the fourth quarter valued at about $151,802,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Wingstop by 760.9% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 381,745 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $108,497,000 after purchasing an additional 337,401 shares in the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in Wingstop in the fourth quarter valued at about $77,855,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Wingstop by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,150,217 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $326,893,000 after purchasing an additional 262,229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Investment Management Group LLC grew its stake in Wingstop by 66.3% in the first quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 446,601 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $100,744,000 after purchasing an additional 178,041 shares in the last quarter.

Wingstop Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:WING opened at $342.73 on Thursday. Wingstop Inc. has a 1-year low of $204.00 and a 1-year high of $433.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.57 billion, a PE ratio of 57.12, a PEG ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 1.84. The business's 50 day moving average is $339.28 and its 200-day moving average is $289.05.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The restaurant operator reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.12. Wingstop had a negative return on equity of 17.07% and a net margin of 25.61%. The company had revenue of $174.33 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $172.60 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.93 EPS. Wingstop's revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Wingstop Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Wingstop Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a boost from Wingstop's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Wingstop's dividend payout ratio is 18.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WING. Bank of America decreased their price target on Wingstop from $430.00 to $420.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 18th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Wingstop from $275.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Wingstop from $367.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Wolfe Research began coverage on Wingstop in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $280.00 price target for the company. Finally, Raymond James Financial upped their price target on Wingstop from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $379.52.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Michael Skipworth sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.34, for a total transaction of $3,373,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 47,190 shares in the company, valued at $15,919,074.60. This trade represents a 17.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Marisa Carona sold 11,938 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $370.34, for a total value of $4,421,118.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 31,838 shares of company stock worth $11,491,935 in the last 90 days. 0.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wingstop Profile

Wingstop Inc, together with its subsidiaries, franchises and operates restaurants under the Wingstop brand. Its restaurants offer classic wings, boneless wings, tenders, and hand-sauced-and-tossed in various flavors, as well as chicken sandwiches with fries and hand-cut carrots and celery that are cooked-to-order.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.