Geode Capital Management LLC Increases Position in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG)

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG) by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 769,608 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 91,416 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 1.27% of First Watch Restaurant Group worth $12,008,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of FWRG. Rocky Mountain Advisers LLC raised its stake in First Watch Restaurant Group by 180.1% in the 3rd quarter. Rocky Mountain Advisers LLC now owns 6,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 4,250 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $119,000. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group during the 3rd quarter worth $157,000. Versor Investments LP bought a new position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $201,000. Finally, Commerce Bank bought a new stake in First Watch Restaurant Group in the third quarter worth $208,000. 96.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Watch Restaurant Group Stock Performance

FWRG stock opened at $18.61 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The company has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 0.89. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $18.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $16.91. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $12.90 and a 1 year high of $25.98.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $251.61 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $256.17 million. First Watch Restaurant Group had a net margin of 2.09% and a return on equity of 3.61%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.09 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on FWRG. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Barclays raised their target price on First Watch Restaurant Group from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Stephens upped their price target on First Watch Restaurant Group from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on First Watch Restaurant Group from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.30.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Advent Partners Gpe Viii Limit sold 8,000,000 shares of First Watch Restaurant Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.76, for a total transaction of $158,080,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 19,189,784 shares in the company, valued at $379,190,131.84. This trade represents a 29.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 5.00% of the company’s stock.

First Watch Restaurant Group 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.