Wingstop’s (WING) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at BTIG Research

BTIG Research restated their buy rating on shares of Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) in a report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $400.00 target price on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on WING. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Wingstop from $365.00 to $330.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $295.00 price target on shares of Wingstop in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Truist Financial set a $374.00 price target on shares of Wingstop and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen lowered Wingstop from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Wingstop from $363.00 to $345.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $336.07.

Wingstop Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WING opened at $260.89 on Thursday. Wingstop has a 1 year low of $204.00 and a 1 year high of $388.14. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $260.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $266.84. The company has a market cap of $7.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.22, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.80.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.16. Wingstop had a negative return on equity of 16.12% and a net margin of 25.01%.The business had revenue of $175.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $177.74 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.92 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Wingstop 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kilandigalu Madati sold 269 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.97, for a total value of $69,931.93. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,283 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,373,421.51. This represents a 4.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wingstop

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WING. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 64.2% in the 2nd quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 8,879 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,990,000 after purchasing an additional 3,471 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Wingstop by 123.9% in the third quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 102,687 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $25,861,000 after buying an additional 56,833 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Wingstop by 85.6% in the second quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,922 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,341,000 after buying an additional 4,576 shares in the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Wingstop by 17.3% during the 2nd quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 741,097 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $249,557,000 after buying an additional 109,108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Wingstop by 287.3% during the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,329 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,593,000 after buying an additional 4,695 shares during the last quarter.

Key Wingstop News

Here are the key news stories impacting Wingstop this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat and constructive guidance — Wingstop reported stronger-than-expected EPS and improved adjusted EBITDA margins, and management guided to low-single-digit domestic comps and ~15% global unit growth, which supports an earnings acceleration thesis. Investors Have WING. Do They Need a Prayer?
• Positive Sentiment: Unit growth & tech-led off-premise gains — Wingstop added ~20% more stores year-over-year and highlighted Smart Kitchen (AI order prioritization) and ~75% digital growth as levers to boost AUVs and operating leverage as comps recover. After Rare Sales Decline, Wingstop Targets AI Kitchens, Loyalty, and Marketing to Reignite Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder returns and institutional buying — Aggressive buybacks (reducing share count ~4–5% in Q4) plus a modest dividend and heavy institutional ownership / buying provide technical and capital-return support that can amplify rallies and prompt short-covering. Investors Have WING. Do They Need a Prayer?
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst moves are mixed — Several firms reaffirm or raise targets (Stephens, BTIG) while others trimmed targets modestly (RBC, Barclays) but many still show sizable upside, producing divergent near-term sentiment despite broader bullish coverage. Analyst Ratings and Targets
• Neutral Sentiment: Street reaction shows caution — TD Cowen reiterated a Hold, reflecting a wait-and-see stance despite the beat; the market is sorting whether growth will be comp-led or unit-led. TD Cowen Reiterates Hold for Wingstop
• Negative Sentiment: Comp pressure and rising competition — Wingstop reported its first annual same-store sales decline in decades; analysts warn competition (the “fried chicken” arms race and other chains) and commoditization of customization could limit pricing power and premium multiples. Wingstop Reports First Same-Store Annual Sales Decline in 22 Years
• Negative Sentiment: Franchisee execution & capital allocation critique — Short reports and some sell-side commentary point to weaker franchisee performance, heavy reliance on new-unit openings for growth, and most FCF being returned to buybacks/dividends rather than reinvested in operations — risks to sustainable comp recovery. Losing Patience With Poor Franchisee Performance
• Negative Sentiment: Broader macro/traffic headwinds — Coverage notes winter storms and weaker traffic trends pressured Q4 comps; management actions (loyalty, marketing, AI kitchens) aim to offset but execution risk remains. How Wingstop plans to weather traffic slides and winter storms

Wingstop Company Profile

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.