Insider Selling: Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) Director Sells 2,700 Shares of Stock

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) Director Kilandigalu Madati sold 2,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.73, for a total value of $703,971.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $673,465.59. The trade was a 51.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Wingstop Stock Down 4.4%

NASDAQ:WING traded down $11.84 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $260.17. The stock had a trading volume of 359,061 shares, compared to its average volume of 845,786. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $260.92 and a 200 day moving average of $265.26. The company has a market capitalization of $7.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.10, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.80. Wingstop Inc. has a one year low of $204.00 and a one year high of $388.14.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.00 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $177.74 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.92 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Wingstop Inc. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wingstop Dividend Announcement

The business 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 dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WING has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Wingstop from $267.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on shares of Wingstop from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Wingstop in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $375.00 price target on shares of Wingstop in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, 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 report on Wednesday, November 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $336.07.

Institutional Trading of Wingstop

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lone Pine Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wingstop during the 3rd quarter worth about $375,317,000. Steadfast Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Wingstop by 296.2% in the 3rd quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 950,521 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $239,227,000 after purchasing an additional 710,621 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Wingstop by 48.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,405,894 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $335,292,000 after purchasing an additional 456,861 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Wingstop by 160.6% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 740,896 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $186,469,000 after purchasing an additional 456,637 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atreides Management LP acquired a new stake in Wingstop in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $93,012,000.

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.