World Cup Fans Flock to Buffalo Wild Wings, Company Shares Hit All-Time Highs
Soccer fans are showing up in record numbers at Buffalo Wild Wings locations to watch the World Cup Matches, and it's helping the company's stock hit an all-time record high.
Monday, shares of Buffalo Wild Wings hit an all-time high of $166, surging 6 percent thanks to good sales over the weekend.
Unlike the Super Bowl, which is only one Sunday a year, the World Cup goes on for over a month and that means sales could continue the upward trend until the end of the tournament on Sunday, July 13.
Bob Derrington, who covers Buffalo Wild Wings for Wunderlich Securities, was surprised to see locations of the wing restaurant packed with hour-long waits and standing-room only viewing for the U.S.-Portugal match Sunday.
After seeing the popularity of the restaurants, Derrington raised his expectations for the restaurant. He predicts that same-store sales will increase by 6 percent because of the World Cup.
Wall Street reacted to Derrington's comments Monday, which is what sent the stock through the roof. Shares on Tuesday were down to the $162 range but still higher than Friday's close.
The World Cup is scoring excellent viewership this time around. Over 25 million viewers tuned into the U.S.-Portugal game on ESPN and Spanish channel Univision. But, fans are watching other matches as well.
"Interestingly, our sources told us that regardless of what matches were being featured since the World Cup began, World Cup viewership in B-dubs [short for Buffalo Wild Wings] has consistently been very strong with most of the 'soccer powerhouse matches' including Mexico, Brazil and Germany especially well attended," Derrington said.
Buffalo Wild Wings has recently lowered its price on chicken wings, which are now priced 20 percent lower than last year. Buffalo Wild Wings is able to buy wings for about $1.20 a pound, down from $1.40 a pound in April.
The World Cup comes during a down-time for American sports. The NHL and NBA seasons just ended. NFL Football is still months away, and MLB baseball hasn't even hit the halfway point. This means less people are heading to bars and restaurants to watch other sports games.
With the U.S. playing Germany on Thursday, June 26, and the field starting to thin out, more people are expected to flock to Buffalo Wild Wings and other sports bars.
"It's not just Buffalo Wild," he said. "It's any sports bar. It'll be packed."
Derrington predicted Buffalo Wild Wings stock price to hit $180.
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