Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) Shares Sold by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Clearbridge Investments LLC decreased its holdings in Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) by 6.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 540,061 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 39,641 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned about 1.85% of Wingstop worth $153,485,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Wingstop by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 902 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 0.3% during the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 11,523 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $4,794,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Wingstop by 62.5% in the 4th quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 91 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its stake in Wingstop by 34.9% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 143 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Wingstop by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 8,499 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,415,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on WING shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Wingstop from $389.00 to $375.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 price target (down previously from $375.00) on shares of Wingstop in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Wingstop from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Northcoast Research downgraded Wingstop from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, TD Securities cut their price target on shares of Wingstop from $365.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $353.68.

Wingstop Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of WING stock opened at $224.00 on Monday. Wingstop Inc. has a 12-month low of $205.60 and a 12-month high of $433.86. The business’s 50 day moving average is $257.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $311.98. The company has a market capitalization of $6.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.88.

Wingstop declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to purchase up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wingstop Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.11%.

Wingstop 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.