Wall Street Zen Downgrades Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) to Sell

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on WING. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Wingstop from $365.00 to $330.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Wingstop from $400.00 to $365.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Wingstop from $295.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Northcoast Research raised shares of Wingstop from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Wingstop from $300.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $340.64.

Wingstop Stock Performance

Shares of WING stock opened at $274.00 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $248.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $281.05. Wingstop has a 52-week low of $204.00 and a 52-week high of $388.14. The stock has a market cap of $7.61 billion, a PE ratio of 44.63, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.77.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The restaurant operator reported $1.09 earnings per share 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.10 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.88 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Wingstop will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Wingstop news, Director Kilandigalu Madati sold 269 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.97, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 4.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wingstop

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Freedom Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 2.2% during the second quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,371 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $462,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Wingstop by 16.8% during the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 223 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Wingstop by 22.3% in the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 181 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital grew its holdings in Wingstop by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,165 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $389,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in Wingstop by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 6,569 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,212,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period.

Wingstop Company Profile

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.