Stevens Capital Management LP Sells 145 Shares of Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING)

Stevens Capital Management LP decreased its position in Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) by 16.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 754 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 145 shares during the period. Stevens Capital Management LP’s holdings in Wingstop were worth $314,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 9.7% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 17,403 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $7,241,000 after purchasing an additional 1,532 shares during the period. SYM FINANCIAL Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Wingstop in the third quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Wingstop in the third quarter valued at approximately $552,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 3.5% in the third quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 2,574 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,071,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 392.5% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 184,068 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $76,587,000 after purchasing an additional 146,692 shares during the period.

Wingstop Price Performance

NASDAQ WING opened at $337.30 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $355.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $379.02. The company has a market cap of $9.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 98.34, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 1.78. Wingstop Inc. has a 1 year low of $240.60 and a 1 year high of $433.86.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.09). Wingstop had a net margin of 17.05% and a negative return on equity of 22.69%. The business had revenue of $162.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $160.24 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. Wingstop’s revenue was up 38.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Wingstop Inc. will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Wingstop announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the restaurant operator to purchase up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wingstop Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $390.00 price target on shares of Wingstop in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Citigroup upped their target price on Wingstop from $417.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Barclays lowered their target price on Wingstop from $470.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Benchmark upgraded Wingstop from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $340.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Stephens lowered their target price on Wingstop from $490.00 to $468.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $368.74.

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.