Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) Short Interest Up 16.0% in February

Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,890,000 shares, an increase of 16.0% from the February 13th total of 1,630,000 shares. Approximately 6.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 744,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.5 days.

Wingstop Stock Performance

Shares of WING opened at $220.19 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.31 billion, a PE ratio of 59.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.88. Wingstop has a fifty-two week low of $205.60 and a fifty-two week high of $433.86. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $263.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $319.30.

Wingstop announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to repurchase up to 5.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wingstop Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WING has been the topic of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Wingstop from $335.00 to $300.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Northcoast Research lowered shares of Wingstop from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Guggenheim upgraded shares of Wingstop from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $280.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Wingstop in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Benchmark cut their target price on Wingstop from $340.00 to $325.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $357.67.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wingstop

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WING. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Wingstop by 28.8% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 2,770 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,153,000 after buying an additional 620 shares during the period. KBC Group NV grew its position in Wingstop by 8.6% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 757 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $315,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Wingstop by 9.1% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 686 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 13,269 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $5,521,000 after purchasing an additional 822 shares during the period. Finally, Claro Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Wingstop in the 3rd quarter worth about $245,000.

Wingstop Company 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.