First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) Rating Increased to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• First Watch Restaurant Group's rating was upgraded from "sell" to "hold" by analysts at Wall Street Zen, indicating a more favorable outlook.
• Institutional investors have shown significant interest, with Fifth Third Bancorp increasing its stake by 8,815.8% in the second quarter.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a 19.1% increase in revenue year-over-year, although it missed EPS estimates.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Sunday.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Stephens upped their target price on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Benchmark increased their price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $21.09.

First Watch Restaurant Group Trading Up 1.9%

NASDAQ:FWRG opened at $17.92 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 298.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.87 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $17.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.03. First Watch Restaurant Group has a one year low of $12.90 and a one year high of $22.71.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.07 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $307.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $304.94 million. First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 0.69% and a net margin of 0.37%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 19.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.14 EPS. First Watch Restaurant Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that First Watch Restaurant Group will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at First Watch Restaurant Group

In related news, major shareholder International L.P. Advent sold 5,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.70, for a total value of $88,500,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 9,689,784 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $171,509,176.80. This trade represents a 34.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 6.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 8,815.8% in the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,694 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,675 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in First Watch Restaurant Group by 207.6% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,950 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,316 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in First Watch Restaurant Group by 61.9% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,375 shares of the company's stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 1,673 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in First Watch Restaurant Group by 1,617.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,445 shares of the company's stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 5,128 shares during the period. Finally, State of Wyoming raised its position in First Watch Restaurant Group by 83.0% in the 1st quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 5,882 shares of the company's stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 2,668 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.11% of the company's stock.

First Watch Restaurant Group Company Profile

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.

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