Foodies may love Wingstop Inc.'s (NASDAQ: WING) spicy wings, but the stock has left some investors feeling burned.
Shares have been under pressure since hitting a peak in 2024, and a recent rise in short interest suggests many investors remain skeptical about its near-term growth prospects.
Still, Wall Street isn't ready to send the order back. Analysts see significant upside from current levels, with the average price target sitting well above where the stock trades today. If they're right, the recent selloff could be a good entry point.
Wingstop Shares Have Fallen Sharply Since Their 2024 Peak
Between mid-2022 and 2024, Wingstop was on a roll, and its shares reflected the enthusiasm. Multiple quarters of earnings and revenue beats, along with more than 20 consecutive years of same-store sales growth, helped send the stock from the $70 to $80 range in June 2022 to an all-time high above $433 by the end of September 2024.
Soon after hitting the high, though, momentum started to fade. The stock bounced around over the next year, but by the end of October 2025, it had lost roughly half its value, trading around $215.
Shares remained volatile into early 2026, rallying ahead of and after the company's fourth-quarter earnings report in February. However, they soon reversed course, and the tough consumer backdrop continued to sour sentiment.
By mid-May, the stock had fallen to a 52-week low of around $116. Year-to-date, the stock is down around 40%, and over the last 12 months, it has fallen more than 60%. Since hitting its 2024 high, Wingstop's market cap has fallen from more than $12.5 billion to roughly $3.9 billion.
Winter Weather and Higher Gas Prices Hurt Q1 Results
The first-quarter results reported at the end of April did little to ease investors' concerns. Same-store sales declined again, and while earnings came in ahead of Wall Street's expectations, revenue fell short.
The company largely attributed the weakness to winter weather, which led to multiple temporary restaurant closures, and to higher gas prices, which weighed on consumer spending, particularly among its lower-income core customer base. According to the company, results would have been broadly in line with expectations, excluding the impact of those factors.
The expectation that gas prices would remain elevated also weighed on the company's outlook. For the full year, Wingstop said it now expects domestic same-store sales to decline by a low-single-digit percentage, compared with its previous forecast for flat to low-single-digit growth. Despite the weaker outlook, the company still expects the business to return to growth in the second half of the year.
Short Interest Jumps Sharply
The weaker results and lowered guidance have fueled a growing wave of bearish bets against the stock.
Short interest has climbed sharply in recent months. As of May 15, roughly 5.2 million shares were sold short, representing about 19.2% of the company's float. That's up from approximately 3.7 million shares, or 13.5% of the float, on April 30.
The increase suggests many investors remain skeptical that the company's recent sales challenges and pressure on lower-income consumers will ease anytime soon.
Wall Street Still Sees Substantial Upside
Even with short interest on the rise, analysts remain largely optimistic and continue to see meaningful upside from current levels.
The stock has a Moderate Buy consensus rating, with 27 analysts rating it a Buy, five rating it a Hold, and one rating it a Sell.
While several analysts have lowered their price targets in recent months, the average 12-month target of roughly $275 still implies around 90% upside from current levels.
Even the lowest price target of $160 sits above the current share price, while the highest target of $440 suggests the stock could more than triple.
The bullish price targets seem to suggest that analysts view many of the company's recent challenges as temporary and remain confident in Wingstop's long-term growth prospects.
Other Quick-Service Restaurant Chains Also Feel the Pinch
Wingstop isn't the only restaurant chain facing pressure as consumers have become more cautious with their spending. Other quick-service restaurant stocks have also struggled as lower-income consumers, who make up a large portion of their customer base, have been squeezed by higher living costs.
Over the past 12 months, both Jack in the Box (NASDAQ: JACK) and The Wendy's Company (NASDAQ: WEN) have fallen more than 40%. Year-to-date, they have fallen around 35% and 20%, respectively. Meanwhile, Domino's Pizza Inc. (NASDAQ: DPZ) has declined about 30% over the last 12 months. The pizza chain is down nearly 25% year to date.
While it's impossible to predict how consumer spending trends will evolve, Wingstop said it remains focused on execution and has been making progress on key strategic initiatives to improve operational efficiency, attract new guests, and launch a loyalty program to drive sustained growth.
Whether these measures will be enough to reignite growth remains to be seen. However, analysts remain largely optimistic about the company's long-term opportunity. If their price targets prove accurate, investors buying the stock at current levels could see significant upside.
The article "Short Sellers Are Piling Into Wingstop, But Analysts See Big Upside" first appeared on MarketBeat.
