Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) Trading Up 3.7% – Here’s Why

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) rose 3.7% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $243.30 and last traded at $244.70. Approximately 1,105,900 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 99% from the average daily volume of 555,104 shares. The stock had previously closed at $235.96.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WING has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Securities cut their price objective on Wingstop from $365.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Wingstop from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 target price (down previously from $375.00) on shares of Wingstop in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Wingstop from $335.00 to $300.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Guggenheim upgraded shares of Wingstop from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $280.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $350.73.

Wingstop Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $254.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $309.15. The company has a market capitalization of $6.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 65.44, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 2.01.

Wingstop Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. Wingstop’s payout ratio is 29.11%.

Wingstop announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to buy up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wingstop

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Wingstop by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,206,062 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $342,763,000 after buying an additional 22,552 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Wingstop by 29.5% in the 4th 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 during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 861,783 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $358,571,000 after buying an additional 12,549 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Wingstop by 0.9% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 816,991 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $326,020,000 after purchasing an additional 7,204 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Wingstop by 23.8% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 801,732 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $227,852,000 after buying an additional 154,055 shares during the period.

About Wingstop

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.