Wingstop Inc. stock WING soared 7% in premarket trade Wednesday, after the operator of aviation-themed chicken-wing restaurants beat estimates for the fourth quarter by a comfortable margin. The company posted net income of $17.6 million, or 59 cents a share, for the quarter, up from $6.9 million, or 23 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Revenue rose 45.6% to $104.9 million. The FactSet consensus was for EPS of 41 cents and revenue of $101.0 million. U.S. same-restaurant sales rose 3.4%, while company-owned same-restaurant sales rose 1.0%. The company backed its three- to five-year guidance for U.S. same-restaurant sales growth in the mid-single digits. It expects to open about 240 global net new units in 2023. The stock has gained 14% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 SPX has fallen 7%.
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