First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FWRG) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation, nine have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $19.00.

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on FWRG shares. Benchmark dropped their target price on First Watch Restaurant Group from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 20th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $21.00 price target on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $14.00 price objective on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $17.00 target price on shares of First Watch Restaurant Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd.

First Watch Restaurant Group Stock Performance

Shares of FWRG stock opened at $12.18 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $750.90 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.50, a P/E/G ratio of 6.25 and a beta of 1.03. First Watch Restaurant Group has a 1-year low of $9.97 and a 1-year high of $19.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $11.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $13.11.

First Watch Restaurant Group (NASDAQ:FWRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.02). First Watch Restaurant Group had a return on equity of 2.85% and a net margin of 1.38%.The business had revenue of $330.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $329.35 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.01) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that First Watch Restaurant Group will post 0.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Watch Restaurant Group

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Royce & Associates LP purchased a new position in First Watch Restaurant Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,006,000. Riverbridge Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 90.8% during the 1st quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC now owns 2,091,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,921,000 after purchasing an additional 995,671 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC raised its stake in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 46.7% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 1,367,051 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,615,000 after purchasing an additional 434,987 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,320,929 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,080,000 after buying an additional 432,634 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Watch Restaurant Group by 18.1% during the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 2,032,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,653,000 after buying an additional 311,938 shares during the last quarter. 96.11% of the stock is 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.