Citigroup Cuts First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) Price Target to $21.00

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) had its price target reduced by investment analysts at Citigroup from $26.00 to $21.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup’s price target suggests a potential upside of 70.32% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also commented on FWRG. TD Cowen lowered their price target on First Watch Restaurant Group from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Tuesday. Guggenheim cut their price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Stephens cut their price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $24.00 to $21.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $20.08.

First Watch Restaurant Group Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:FWRG traded up $0.01 on Wednesday, reaching $12.33. 2,590,625 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,615,607. The stock has a market capitalization of $752.50 million, a P/E ratio of 153.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.88. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $16.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. First Watch Restaurant Group has a 52 week low of $12.17 and a 52 week high of $21.99.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.16. First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 0.83% and a net margin of 0.42%.The company had revenue of $316.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $317.49 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.01 EPS. First Watch Restaurant Group’s quarterly revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that First Watch Restaurant Group will post 0.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at First Watch Restaurant Group

In related news, Director William A. Kussell sold 6,165 shares of First Watch Restaurant Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.00, for a total transaction of $104,805.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 26,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $448,834. This trade represents a 18.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 6.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Watch Restaurant Group

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 67.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 54,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $903,000 after acquiring an additional 21,830 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group by 31.8% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 22,766 shares of the company’s stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 5,497 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its position in First Watch Restaurant Group by 76.1% in the 2nd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $368,000 after purchasing an additional 9,920 shares during the period. Emerald Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in First Watch Restaurant Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $6,173,000. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 12.2% during the 2nd quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 76,861 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,233,000 after buying an additional 8,358 shares during the period. 96.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key First Watch Restaurant Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting First Watch Restaurant Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results: First Watch reported $0.24 EPS, well above the $0.08 consensus, and revenue rose ~20% year‑over‑year — a clear beat on profitability metrics. Press Release / Slide Deck
• Positive Sentiment: 2026 growth outlook: Management outlined a revenue growth target of 12%–14% for FY2026 and said it will invest in digital marketing and menu innovation — guidance that supports medium‑term top‑line expansion. MSN Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue vs. Street: Q4 revenue ($316.35M) came in essentially inline with the consensus (~$317.5M) — solid year‑over‑year growth but not a clear top‑line beat. Yahoo Finance
• Neutral Sentiment: Documentation: The company released the earnings press release, slide deck and the full earnings‑call transcript — useful for investors to parse margin drivers and unit economics. MSN / Call Coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst price‑target cuts: Multiple firms trimmed targets the same day — Barclays 19→17 (overweight), Guggenheim 23→21 (buy), Stephens 24→21 (overweight), TD Cowen 21→18 (buy). The cuts could cap near‑term upside despite the maintained buy/overweight ratings. Benzinga TickerReport
• Negative Sentiment: CFO transition: First Watch disclosed that CFO Mel Hope will retire later this year; while the company is running a planned succession process, CFO changes can create short‑term investor uncertainty. GlobeNewswire

First Watch Restaurant Group Company Profile

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc (NASDAQ: FWRG) operates a specialty daytime dining concept focused on breakfast, brunch and lunch. The company’s casual, full-service cafés emphasize fresh ingredients, made-to-order entrées and a seasonally driven menu that ranges from omelets and Benedicts to salads, skillets and afternoon sandwiches. First Watch positions itself as a daytime-only destination, with most locations opening early morning and closing by mid-afternoon.

Founded in 1983 by Ken Pendery and John Sullivan in Pacific Grove, California, First Watch began as a single café and gradually expanded through company-owned and select franchised locations.