BNP Paribas Financial Markets Makes New Investment in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets bought a new stake in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 4,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $86,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Arizona State Retirement System acquired a new stake in First Watch Restaurant Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $228,000. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group by 505.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 172,515 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,690,000 after purchasing an additional 144,014 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 576,890 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,736,000 after purchasing an additional 49,826 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group by 23.2% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 309,851 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,766,000 after purchasing an additional 58,448 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,141,209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,848,000 after purchasing an additional 154,784 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.11% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Christopher Anthony Tomasso sold 42,039 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total value of $706,675.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 389,832 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,553,075.92. This represents a 9.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jay Anthony Wolszczak sold 5,743 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total value of $96,539.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 37,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $634,880.08. The trade was a 13.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

First Watch Restaurant Group Price Performance

First Watch Restaurant Group stock opened at $15.43 on Monday. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $12.90 and a 52 week high of $22.71. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $941.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.76, a PEG ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.01.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.04 by ($0.05). First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 3.61% and a net margin of 2.09%. The business had revenue of $282.24 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $282.98 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.12 earnings per share. First Watch Restaurant Group’s quarterly revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on FWRG shares. Guggenheim decreased their price target on First Watch Restaurant Group from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Bank of America raised their target price on First Watch Restaurant Group from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Barclays reduced their target price on First Watch Restaurant Group from $24.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. TD Securities reduced their target price on First Watch Restaurant Group from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $17.00 price target on First Watch Restaurant Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $21.36.

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.