Federated Hermes Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG)

Federated Hermes Inc. cut its holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG) by 14.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,154,465 shares of the company’s stock after selling 200,200 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group were worth $21,485,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Clearbridge Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in the fourth quarter valued at $12,732,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group by 25.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,351,614 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,764,000 after buying an additional 479,741 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in First Watch Restaurant Group by 22.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,986,425 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,988,000 after buying an additional 366,227 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 44.2% during the 4th quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 947,240 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,552,000 after acquiring an additional 290,173 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Investment Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 37.7% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 693,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,903,000 after acquiring an additional 189,681 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on FWRG. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $21.00 target price on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $24.00 target price on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on First Watch Restaurant Group from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $22.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.45.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Watch Restaurant Group

In other news, CEO Christopher Anthony Tomasso sold 42,039 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total transaction of $706,675.59. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 389,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,553,075.92. This trade represents a 9.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jay Anthony Wolszczak sold 5,743 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.81, for a total transaction of $96,539.83. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 37,768 shares in the company, valued at $634,880.08. This represents a 13.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

First Watch Restaurant Group Stock Performance

First Watch Restaurant Group stock opened at $15.26 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.54. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. has a one year low of $12.90 and a one year high of $25.98. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $18.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $926.28 million, a PE ratio of 46.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.02.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $263.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $262.82 million. First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 3.61% and a net margin of 2.09%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.04 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. will post 0.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Watch Restaurant Group Company Profile

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates and franchises restaurants under the First Watch trade name in the United States. The company was formerly known as AI Fresh Super Holdco, Inc and changed its name to First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc in December 2019. First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc was founded in 1983 and is based in Bradenton, Florida.