Stock Traders Buy High Volume of First Watch Restaurant Group Call Options (NASDAQ:FWRG)

Key Points

• Unusually high options activity: Investors bought 6,994 First Watch call options, 1,482% above the typical daily volume of 442 contracts.
• Analysts remain broadly positive: The stock has a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $17.90, although several analysts recently lowered their targets.
• Shares rose 4% to $13.26: First Watch reported 15.2% year-over-year revenue growth in its latest quarter but narrowly missed earnings expectations, while institutional investors own 96.11% of the company.

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Monday. Investors purchased 6,994 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 1,482% compared to the typical daily volume of 442 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on FWRG shares. Wall Street Zen raised First Watch Restaurant Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded First Watch Restaurant Group from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Thursday. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Citigroup dropped their target price on First Watch Restaurant Group from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Stephens cut their target price on First Watch Restaurant Group from $21.00 to $18.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $17.90.

First Watch Restaurant Group Stock Up 4.0%

FWRG stock traded up $0.52 on Monday, hitting $13.26. 1,042,974 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,459,439. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $11.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.47. First Watch Restaurant Group has a 12-month low of $9.88 and a 12-month high of $18.77. The stock has a market cap of $817.97 million, a P/E ratio of 45.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 57.54 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.27.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $354.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $351.57 million. First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 2.85% and a net margin of 1.35%. First Watch Restaurant Group's revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.03 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that First Watch Restaurant Group will post 0.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Watch Restaurant Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group during the second quarter worth approximately $58,445,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 96.7% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,957,697 shares of the company's stock worth $41,477,000 after purchasing an additional 1,946,084 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $49,291,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 19.7% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,084,886 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,328,000 after purchasing an additional 508,704 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 9.5% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,780,839 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,663,000 after purchasing an additional 154,018 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.11% of the company's stock.

First Watch Restaurant Group Company Profile

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc operates a daytime-focused restaurant concept serving breakfast, brunch and lunch. Its restaurants offer made-to-order meals such as omelets, pancakes, French toast, sandwiches, salads and bowls, along with fresh juices, coffee and other beverages. The company generally does not serve dinner, positioning its restaurants around the daytime dining occasion.

First Watch restaurants emphasize fresh preparation and seasonal menu offerings, including items made with eggs, fruits, vegetables and other ingredients prepared in the restaurant.

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