Insider Selling: Texas Roadhouse (NASDAQ:TXRH) Director Sells $168,908.48 in Stock

Texas Roadhouse, Inc. (NASDAQ:TXRH) Director Hugh Carroll sold 988 shares of Texas Roadhouse stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.96, for a total value of $168,908.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 866 shares in the company, valued at $148,051.36. This represents a 53.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Texas Roadhouse Stock Performance

Texas Roadhouse stock opened at $170.89 on Friday. Texas Roadhouse, Inc. has a 52 week low of $148.73 and a 52 week high of $199.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $182.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $173.46.

Texas Roadhouse (NASDAQ:TXRH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.25). The firm had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Texas Roadhouse had a net margin of 6.90% and a return on equity of 27.88%. Texas Roadhouse’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.73 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Texas Roadhouse, Inc. will post 7.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Texas Roadhouse Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. This is a positive change from Texas Roadhouse’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Texas Roadhouse’s payout ratio is currently 49.26%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Texas Roadhouse

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in Texas Roadhouse by 528.2% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,172,738 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $594,603,000 after purchasing an additional 2,667,716 shares during the period. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in shares of Texas Roadhouse by 580.2% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,236,885 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $371,658,000 after purchasing an additional 1,908,033 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Texas Roadhouse by 85.7% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,343,000 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $439,102,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081,413 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Texas Roadhouse during the third quarter valued at about $157,310,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Texas Roadhouse by 228.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,329,052 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $220,623,000 after buying an additional 924,306 shares during the last quarter. 94.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Texas Roadhouse in a research report on Monday, December 29th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Texas Roadhouse in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Texas Roadhouse in a report on Monday, February 23rd. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Texas Roadhouse in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on Texas Roadhouse from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $196.55.

About Texas Roadhouse

Texas Roadhouse, Inc is a casual dining restaurant chain specializing in hand‐cut steaks, fall‐off‐the‐bone ribs, chicken, seafood and house specialties. Each restaurant features a Western‐themed décor, open kitchens and a signature line dance presentation of fresh, made‐from‐scratch sides and breads. The company emphasizes an energetic dining experience, focusing on hospitality, value and a family‐friendly environment.

The concept was created in 1993 by founder Kent Taylor, who sought to combine high‐quality steaks with an approachable, community‐oriented atmosphere.