Barclays Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) Stock Price

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) had its target price cut by Barclays from $359.00 to $315.00 in a report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on WING. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Wingstop from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $350.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Benchmark decreased their target price on shares of Wingstop from $340.00 to $325.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $450.00 price target on shares of Wingstop in a research note on Wednesday. Wedbush reduced their price target on shares of Wingstop from $390.00 to $355.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Wingstop from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $458.00 to $377.00 in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $367.05.

Wingstop Trading Down 5.3 %

WING opened at $234.02 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.71 billion, a PE ratio of 63.08, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.81. Wingstop has a twelve month low of $232.19 and a twelve month high of $433.86. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $288.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $340.27.

Wingstop announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to reacquire up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wingstop Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.11%.

Insider Activity at Wingstop

In other Wingstop news, SVP Raj Kapoor sold 266 shares of Wingstop stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $324.38, for a total transaction of $86,285.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 266 shares in the company, valued at approximately $86,285.08. The trade was a 50.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wingstop

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 384.6% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 126 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in Wingstop by 104.0% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 49,908 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $20,766,000 after purchasing an additional 25,440 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Wingstop by 41,244.9% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 65,325 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $27,180,000 after purchasing an additional 65,167 shares during the period. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC grew its holdings in Wingstop by 5.7% in the third quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 5,941 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,472,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the period. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in Wingstop in the third quarter valued at approximately $224,000.

Wingstop Company Profile

Wingstop Inc, together with its subsidiaries, franchises and operates restaurants under the Wingstop brand. Its restaurants offer classic wings, boneless wings, tenders, and hand-sauced-and-tossed in various flavors, as well as chicken sandwiches with fries and hand-cut carrots and celery that are cooked-to-order.