Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) Given Buy Rating at BTIG Research

BTIG Research restated their buy rating on shares of Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) in a report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. BTIG Research currently has a $400.00 price target on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Wingstop from $365.00 to $330.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on Wingstop from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Wall Street Zen cut Wingstop from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Wingstop from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $335.00 price objective on shares of Wingstop in a research report on Wednesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Wingstop currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $336.07.

Wingstop Trading Down 6.8%

Shares of Wingstop stock opened at $259.99 on Thursday. Wingstop has a 12-month low of $204.00 and a 12-month high of $388.14. The company has a market cap of $7.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.07, a PEG ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 1.80. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $259.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $267.94.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.16. Wingstop had a net margin of 25.01% and a negative return on equity of 16.12%. The firm had revenue of $175.69 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $177.74 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.92 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Wingstop will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wingstop Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Wingstop’s payout ratio is presently 19.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kilandigalu Madati sold 269 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.97, for a total transaction of $69,931.93. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,283 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,373,421.51. This represents a 4.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its position in shares of Wingstop by 1,650.0% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 105 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Wingstop by 76.9% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 138 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Wingstop by 197.9% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 143 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 134.2% in the 2nd quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 104 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 408 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Wingstop by 54.3% in the third quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter.

More Wingstop News

Here are the key news stories impacting Wingstop this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings beat and margin upside — Wingstop reported $1.00 EPS vs. $0.84 expected and showed stronger-than-anticipated adjusted EBITDA and margin performance, which relieved investor fears about profitability. PR Newswire: Q4 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Heavy unit expansion and international growth — Management opened 493 net new restaurants in 2025 and expanded into new international markets, underpinning systemwide sales growth and long-term comp leverage. PR Newswire: Unit Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Clear growth and capital-return plan — 2026 guidance calls for low-single-digit U.S. comps and ~15% global unit growth; company continues dividends and buybacks, supporting shareholder returns. Analysts and MarketBeat noted the constructive outlook. MarketBeat: Outlook & Capital Return
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst reactions are mixed — Several firms trimmed price targets (RBC, Barclays) but maintained positive ratings; others (Stephens, BTIG) reaffirmed higher targets, while TD Cowen kept a Hold. The market is parsing upside in PTs vs. near-term traffic risk. The Fly: PT Changes
• Neutral Sentiment: Company initiatives to restore traffic — management is pushing Smart Kitchen (AI order routing), loyalty and marketing programs to win back off-premise volume; these are strategic but will take time to fully impact comps. Restaurant Dive: Smart Kitchen & Loyalty
• Negative Sentiment: Domestic comps weakness and revenue miss — Domestic same-store sales declined (first full-year drop in 22 years) and Q4 revenue slightly missed estimates, highlighting near-term demand pressure. NRN: Comps Decline
• Negative Sentiment: Franchisee performance concerns — Coverage flagged execution and franchisee-performance issues that prompted investor scrutiny and a Seeking Alpha downgrade, a potential operational risk if not addressed. Seeking Alpha: Franchisee Concerns

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.