Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) Hits New 1-Year Low - What's Next?

Key Points

• Wingstop hit a new 52-week low, trading as low as $123.40 after closing at $127.33, highlighting renewed pressure on the stock despite relatively heavy volume.
• Analyst sentiment has weakened: Goldman Sachs downgraded Wingstop to Neutral and cut its price target to $190, though the overall consensus remains Moderate Buy with an average target of $282.41.
• The company recently beat earnings expectations with $1.18 EPS on 7.4% year-over-year revenue growth, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share payable June 5.

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $123.40 and last traded at $123.73, with a volume of 908558 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $127.33.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WING. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Wingstop from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $290.00 to $190.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Wingstop in a report on Monday, March 9th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $320.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial set a $374.00 target price on shares of Wingstop and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Benchmark dropped their price objective on shares of Wingstop from $320.00 to $285.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $255.00 price objective on shares of Wingstop in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $282.41.

Wingstop Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.37 billion, a PE ratio of 30.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.86. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $181.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $228.31.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $183.73 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $187.82 million. Wingstop had a net margin of 15.77% and a negative return on equity of 16.22%. The business's revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Wingstop Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Wingstop Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Wingstop's payout ratio is presently 29.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wingstop

In other Wingstop news, Director Wesley S. Mcdonald sold 566 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $141,500.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,093,750. The trade was a 11.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Kilandigalu Madati sold 2,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.73, for a total transaction of $703,971.00. Following the sale, the director owned 2,583 shares in the company, valued at $673,465.59. The trade was a 51.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wingstop

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Westpac Banking Corp boosted its position in shares of Wingstop by 80.0% in the 1st quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 5,400 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $837,000 after buying an additional 2,400 shares in the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda America Inc boosted its position in shares of Wingstop by 19.3% in the 1st quarter. Meiji Yasuda America Inc now owns 12,107 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $1,876,000 after buying an additional 1,959 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Wingstop by 17.0% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 356,292 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $55,216,000 after buying an additional 51,703 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Wingstop by 17.3% in the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 888 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $138,000 after buying an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Future Fund LLC boosted its position in shares of Wingstop by 24.5% in the 1st quarter. Future Fund LLC now owns 6,121 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $949,000 after buying an additional 1,206 shares in the last quarter.

About Wingstop

Wingstop Inc NASDAQ: WING is a fast-casual restaurant chain specializing in chicken wings and related menu items. Founded in 1994 in Garland, Texas, the company has built its brand around bold, chef-inspired wing flavors and a streamlined service model that caters to dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering orders.

The company's core offerings include both bone-in and boneless chicken wings tossed in a variety of proprietary rubs and sauces, such as Original Hot, Lemon Pepper, and Mango Habanero.

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