Penn Capital Management Company LLC Acquires 119,462 Shares of First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. $FWRG

Penn Capital Management Company LLC grew its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG) by 11.9% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,125,353 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 119,462 shares during the period. First Watch Restaurant Group comprises 1.4% of Penn Capital Management Company LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Penn Capital Management Company LLC’s holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group were worth $17,642,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new position in First Watch Restaurant Group in the third quarter valued at $30,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 61.9% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,375 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 1,673 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in First Watch Restaurant Group by 435.5% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,277 shares of the company’s stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 5,918 shares during the period. Comerica Bank increased its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 30.2% in the third quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 8,577 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,000 after buying an additional 1,991 shares during the period. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey lifted its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 17.3% in the 2nd quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 9,108 shares of the company’s stock valued at $146,000 after acquiring an additional 1,341 shares during the last quarter. 96.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Watch Restaurant Group Price Performance

Shares of FWRG stock opened at $12.61 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $15.05 and its 200 day moving average is $16.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market cap of $770.98 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.68, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.92. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $11.44 and a twelve month high of $20.55.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $316.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $317.49 million. First Watch Restaurant Group had a net margin of 1.59% and a return on equity of 3.20%. First Watch Restaurant Group’s quarterly revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.01 EPS. Research analysts expect that First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. will post 0.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FWRG. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Monday, December 29th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $19.00 price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Zacks Research upgraded First Watch Restaurant Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. DA Davidson started coverage on First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Friday, March 6th. They set a “buy” rating and a $17.00 target price for the company. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Watch Restaurant Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $19.75.

Insider Activity at First Watch Restaurant Group

In other First Watch Restaurant Group news, CFO H Melville Hope III sold 7,358 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.59, for a total transaction of $92,637.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 115,665 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,456,222.35. This trade represents a 5.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura Anne Sorensen sold 4,732 shares of First Watch Restaurant Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.59, for a total transaction of $59,575.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 239,050 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,009,639.50. This trade represents a 1.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 35,923 shares of company stock worth $479,458 over the last quarter. 6.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About First Watch Restaurant Group

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.