Piper Sandler Lowers First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) Price Target to $20.00

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG - Free Report) had its price objective trimmed by Piper Sandler from $23.00 to $20.00 in a research report released on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $21.00 price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Stephens dropped their price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, TD Securities dropped their price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $21.36.

First Watch Restaurant Group Stock Performance

Shares of FWRG traded up $0.75 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $16.52. 322,329 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 713,771. The stock's fifty day moving average is $17.61 and its 200 day moving average is $18.75. The stock has a market cap of $1.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.54. First Watch Restaurant Group has a 1-year low of $12.90 and a 1-year high of $22.71.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.04 by ($0.05). First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 3.61% and a net margin of 2.09%. The business had revenue of $282.24 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $282.98 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.12 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that First Watch Restaurant Group will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Watch Restaurant Group news, CEO Christopher Anthony Tomasso sold 42,039 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total transaction of $706,675.59. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 389,832 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,553,075.92. This represents a 9.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jay Anthony Wolszczak sold 5,743 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total transaction of $96,539.83. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 37,768 shares in the company, valued at $634,880.08. This represents a 13.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Watch Restaurant Group

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FWRG. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,095,000. Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 59.0% in the 4th quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,582,303 shares of the company's stock worth $48,057,000 after purchasing an additional 958,417 shares during the period. Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $15,506,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $12,732,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 25.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,351,614 shares of the company's stock worth $43,764,000 after purchasing an additional 479,741 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.11% 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.