Copeland Capital Management LLC Buys 44,866 Shares of Wingstop Inc. $WING

Copeland Capital Management LLC grew its position in Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) by 18.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 287,548 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 44,866 shares during the period. Wingstop accounts for 1.5% of Copeland Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Copeland Capital Management LLC owned about 1.03% of Wingstop worth $72,370,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of WING. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 501.1% during the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,112 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 927 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Wingstop during the 1st quarter worth about $256,000. Quarry LP grew its holdings in Wingstop by 140.7% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 349 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Wingstop by 336.6% in the 1st quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 3,833 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $865,000 after acquiring an additional 2,955 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Wingstop by 24.7% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 114,122 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $25,743,000 after acquiring an additional 22,600 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wingstop

In other news, Director Kilandigalu Madati sold 269 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.97, for a total value of $69,931.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,283 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,373,421.51. The trade was a 4.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wingstop Trading Down 4.9%

Shares of WING opened at $243.51 on Tuesday. Wingstop Inc. has a 1 year low of $204.00 and a 1 year high of $388.14. The stock has a market cap of $6.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.75. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $247.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $286.13.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The restaurant operator reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.18. Wingstop had a negative return on equity of 16.17% and a net margin of 25.51%.The company had revenue of $175.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $189.10 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.88 EPS. Wingstop’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Wingstop Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Wingstop Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 21st were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 21st. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WING. Mizuho upgraded shares of Wingstop to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Wingstop from $330.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Wingstop from $345.00 to $280.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Wingstop in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on Wingstop from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $340.78.

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.