First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) Research Coverage Started at DA Davidson

DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) in a research note released on Friday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $17.00 price objective on the stock.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $19.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of First Watch Restaurant Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on First Watch Restaurant Group from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded First Watch Restaurant Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, First Watch Restaurant Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $19.85.

First Watch Restaurant Group Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:FWRG opened at $12.93 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $790.54 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.71, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.92. First Watch Restaurant Group has a 12-month low of $11.88 and a 12-month high of $20.55. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $15.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $16.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $316.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $317.49 million. First Watch Restaurant Group had a net margin of 1.59% and a return on equity of 3.20%. First Watch Restaurant Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.01 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that First Watch Restaurant Group will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director William A. Kussell sold 6,165 shares of First Watch Restaurant Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.00, for a total transaction of $104,805.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 26,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $448,834. The trade was a 18.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 6.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Watch Restaurant Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of FWRG. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new position in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 207.6% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,316 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group during the 4th quarter worth about $64,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group during the 4th quarter worth about $66,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in First Watch Restaurant Group by 61.9% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,375 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 1,673 shares during the last quarter. 96.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Watch Restaurant Group Company Profile

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc (NASDAQ: FWRG) operates a specialty daytime dining concept focused on breakfast, brunch and lunch. The company’s casual, full-service cafés emphasize fresh ingredients, made-to-order entrées and a seasonally driven menu that ranges from omelets and Benedicts to salads, skillets and afternoon sandwiches. First Watch positions itself as a daytime-only destination, with most locations opening early morning and closing by mid-afternoon.

Founded in 1983 by Ken Pendery and John Sullivan in Pacific Grove, California, First Watch began as a single café and gradually expanded through company-owned and select franchised locations.