Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Stake in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG)

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG) by 25.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,351,614 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 479,741 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc.’s holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group were worth $43,764,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. LPL Financial LLC bought a new position in First Watch Restaurant Group in the 4th quarter worth $470,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in First Watch Restaurant Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $305,000. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 107.9% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 139,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,593,000 after acquiring an additional 72,328 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in the fourth quarter worth about $200,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. 96.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FWRG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $21.00 price target on First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. TD Securities raised shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $24.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.45.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Watch Restaurant Group news, insider Jay Anthony Wolszczak sold 5,743 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total value of $96,539.83. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 37,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $634,880.08. This represents a 13.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher Anthony Tomasso sold 42,039 shares of First Watch Restaurant Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total value of $706,675.59. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 389,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,553,075.92. This trade represents a 9.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

First Watch Restaurant Group Price Performance

Shares of First Watch Restaurant Group stock opened at $17.54 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.54. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $18.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $18.29. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. has a one year low of $12.90 and a one year high of $25.98.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.02 by ($0.01). First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 3.61% and a net margin of 2.09%. The firm had revenue of $263.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $262.82 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.04 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

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.