Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 66,102 Shares of Wingstop Inc. $WING

Vanguard Group Inc. lessened its stake in Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,620,498 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 66,102 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 0.09% of Wingstop worth $659,527,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quaker Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Wingstop by 134.2% during the second quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 104 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 408 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its position in Wingstop by 1,650.0% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 105 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Wingstop by 4,200.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 129 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Wingstop by 54.3% during the 3rd quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in Wingstop by 623.8% during the 2nd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 152 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the period.

Wingstop Stock Down 4.8%

Shares of WING stock opened at $248.34 on Tuesday. Wingstop Inc. has a 12-month low of $204.00 and a 12-month high of $388.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.80. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $260.43 and a 200-day moving average of $265.77.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 negative return on equity of 16.12% and a net margin of 25.01%.The business had revenue of $175.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $177.74 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.92 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Wingstop Inc. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Wingstop Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Wingstop’s payout ratio is currently 19.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Northcoast Research raised shares of Wingstop from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Wingstop in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup increased their price target on Wingstop from $267.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Wingstop from $365.00 to $330.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $295.00 price objective on shares of Wingstop in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Wingstop presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $336.07.

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.