Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) Stock Price Down 9.1% Following Insider Selling

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) shares were down 9.1% on Monday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $235.00 and last traded at $235.9790. Approximately 522,466 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 38% from the average daily volume of 843,715 shares. The stock had previously closed at $259.51.

Specifically, Director Kilandigalu Madati sold 2,700 shares of Wingstop stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.73, for a total transaction of $703,971.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,583 shares in the company, valued at $673,465.59. The trade was a 51.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Wesley S. Mcdonald sold 566 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $141,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,093,750. The trade was a 11.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WING has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Wingstop from $350.00 to $340.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Barclays decreased their target price on Wingstop from $335.00 to $330.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Wingstop in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Wingstop from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on shares of Wingstop from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $336.07.

Wingstop Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $6.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.80. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $260.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $263.68.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $175.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $177.74 million. Wingstop had a negative return on equity of 16.12% and a net margin of 25.01%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.92 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Wingstop Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Wingstop Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders 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 is 19.42%.

Institutional Trading of Wingstop

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WING. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its stake in Wingstop by 1,650.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 105 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 76.9% in the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 138 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Wingstop by 197.9% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 143 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Wingstop by 54.3% in the third quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Wingstop by 4,200.0% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 129 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares in the last quarter.

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.