Morgan Stanley Cuts Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) Price Target to $238.00

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) had its price target cut by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $255.00 to $238.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 77.32% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Wingstop from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $325.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Wingstop from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. BTIG Research decreased their price objective on shares of Wingstop from $305.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Wingstop in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $173.00 target price on shares of Wingstop in a report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $252.52.

Wingstop Stock Down 3.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:WING traded down $5.23 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $134.22. The company had a trading volume of 948,480 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,156,375. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $152.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $189.66. Wingstop has a 1-year low of $116.35 and a 1-year high of $381.45. The stock has a market cap of $3.66 billion, a PE ratio of 33.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.79.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $185.56 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $190.25 million. Wingstop had a negative return on equity of 16.22% and a net margin of 15.77%.During the same period last year, the company earned $1.00 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Wingstop will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Wingstop

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,111,089 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $503,475,000 after buying an additional 58,386 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in Wingstop by 48.1% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,405,894 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $335,292,000 after acquiring an additional 456,861 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,173,613 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $279,895,000 after acquiring an additional 70,224 shares during the period. Steadfast Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 296.2% during the third quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 950,521 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $239,227,000 after acquiring an additional 710,621 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Wingstop by 18.3% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 798,616 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $123,761,000 after purchasing an additional 123,315 shares during the last quarter.

More Wingstop News

Here are the key news stories impacting Wingstop this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter adjusted earnings were $1.18 per share, ahead of the $1.02 analyst consensus and up from $1.00 a year earlier. Revenue increased 6.5% year over year to $185.56 million. Wingstop Tops Q2 Earnings Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Wingstop opened 102 net new locations during the quarter, resulting in 16% unit growth. Management reiterated its target for 15% to 16% global unit growth, supporting the company’s longer-term expansion story. Wingstop Fiscal Second-Quarter Results
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its quarterly dividend 10% to $0.33 per share, although the annualized yield remains modest at approximately 0.9%. Wingstop Declares Dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating with a $200 price target, indicating continued confidence in Wingstop’s long-term growth potential. Stephens Rating Update
• Negative Sentiment: Management expects domestic same-store sales to decline 4% to 6% in 2026. It attributed recent weakness to pressure on consumer spending and said improved value messaging may be needed to restore traffic. Wingstop Same-Store Sales Outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Quarterly revenue fell short of expectations of $190.25 million, and analysts lowered price targets: Wells Fargo cut its target to $165 while BTIG reduced its target to $265, though both maintained bullish ratings. The combination of weak traffic trends and target reductions is weighing on sentiment. Analyst Price Target Updates

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.