SEC Form PRE 14A filed by Wingstop Inc.

LETTER TO OUR STOCKHOLDERS

    , 2025

Dear Fellow Stockholder:

We cordially invite you to attend the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders of Wingstop Inc. to be held on Thursday, May 22, 2025, at 9:00 a.m. Central Time. We will be holding the Annual Meeting virtually via the Internet to maximize your ability to participate in the meeting. You will be able to attend and participate in the Annual Meeting online, vote your shares electronically and submit your questions prior to the Annual Meeting. The Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders and this Proxy Statement describe the business that will be acted upon at the meeting.

For your convenience, we have elected to take advantage of the Securities and Exchange Commission rule that allows us to furnish proxy materials to our stockholders over the Internet. We believe that this e-proxy process expedites stockholders’ receipt of proxy materials while also lowering the costs and reducing the environmental impact of our Annual Meeting. On or about     , 2025, we will begin mailing a Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials containing instructions on how to access our Proxy Statement and 2024 Annual Report and how to submit your proxy over the Internet or by telephone or request and return a proxy card by mail. For information on how to submit your proxy or vote your shares, please refer to the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, proxy materials email, or proxy card you receive to ensure that your shares will be represented and voted at the Annual Meeting, even if you cannot attend. Copies of the Proxy Statement and 2024 Annual Report are available at www.proxydocs.com/WING.

Your vote is important. Even if you plan to attend the Annual Meeting, please follow the instructions provided to you and submit your proxy today. This will not prevent you from voting your shares during the Annual Meeting if you are able to attend.

On behalf of your Board of Directors, thank you for your continued support of and interest in Wingstop.

Sincerely,

WINGSTOP INC.

2801 N Central Expressway

Suite 1600

Dallas, Texas 75204

NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

TO BE HELD MAY 22, 2025

[Continued on the next page]

By order of the Board of Directors,

Albert G. McGrath

Senior Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary

    , 2025

This summary highlights information contained elsewhere in this Proxy Statement. This summary does not contain all of the information that you should consider in making a voting decision, and you should read the entire Proxy Statement carefully before voting. Unless the context indicates otherwise, references to “Wingstop,” “we,” “our,” “us,” or the “Company” are to Wingstop Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries. References to the “Board” or the “Board of Directors” are to the Board of Directors of Wingstop Inc.

Annual Meeting Information

Items of Business and Voting Recommendations

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PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY

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PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY

Compensation Best Practices

The table below summarizes the Company’s key executive compensation practices, including practices the Company has implemented that the Compensation Committee believes will align executive officer compensation with Company performance and the execution of our strategy.

				WINGSTOP INC. 2025 PROXY STATEMENT | 3

PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY

Proposal 1—Director Election Proposal

Director Nominees

The Board of Directors is asking you to elect the four nominees named below as Class I directors for terms that expire at the 2028 annual meeting of stockholders and upon the election and qualification of their successors. The following table provides summary information about the four director nominees. For more information about the director nominees, see pages 11 and 12.

Vote Required

The election of the director nominees will be determined by a plurality of the votes cast at the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “Annual Meeting”). However, pursuant to our Corporate Governance Guidelines, each of the director nominees, in order to be nominated for election, has tendered an irrevocable resignation that becomes effective if such nominee fails to receive more “FOR” votes than “WITHHELD” votes in an uncontested election of directors at an annual meeting and the Board accepts such resignation. For additional information concerning this policy, see “Proposal 1—Election of Directors—Vote Required; Director Resignation Policy for Failure to Receive Majority Vote in Election” on page 9.

Proposal 2—Auditor Ratification Proposal

Auditor Ratification

The Board is asking you to ratify the selection of KPMG LLP (“KPMG”) as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 27, 2025. Set forth on page 40 is summary information with respect to the fees for services provided to us by KPMG during the fiscal years ended December 28, 2024 and December 30, 2023.

Vote Required

The approval of the Auditor Ratification Proposal requires the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority in voting power of the shares of our common stock that are present in person or by proxy and entitled to vote thereon. Abstentions will have the same effect as a vote against this proposal. Brokers have discretionary authority to vote on this proposal without your instruction. As a result, we do not expect any broker non-votes with respect to this proposal.

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PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY

Proposal 3—Say-on-Pay Proposal

Say-on-Pay

Pursuant to Section 14A(a)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), we are asking our stockholders to approve, on an advisory or non-binding basis, the compensation of our named executive officers as disclosed in this Proxy Statement. For a detailed description of our executive compensation program, see “Compensation Discussion and Analysis” beginning on page 44.

Vote Required

The approval of the Say-on-Pay Proposal, on a non-binding advisory basis, requires the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority in voting power of the shares of our common stock that are present in person or by proxy and entitled to vote thereon. Abstentions will have the same effect as a vote against this proposal. Brokers do not have discretion to vote on this proposal without your instruction. If you do not instruct your broker how to vote on this proposal, it may result in a broker non-vote on this proposal. A broker non-vote will have no effect on the outcome of the vote on this proposal.

Proposal 4—Approve an Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to Declassify the Board of Directors

The Board is asking you to approve an amendment to the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the “Certificate of Incorporation”) to declassify the Board and provide for the annual election of directors. For a detailed description of this proposal, see “Proposal 4—Approve an Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to Declassify the Board of Directors” beginning on page 78.

Vote Required

The approval of Proposal 4 requires the affirmative vote of the holders of at least 66 2/3% of the voting power of the outstanding shares entitled to vote generally in the election of directors. Abstentions and broker non-votes will have the same effect as a vote against this proposal. Brokers do not have discretion to vote on this proposal without your instruction. If you do not instruct your broker how to vote on this proposal, it may result in a broker non-vote on this proposal.

Proposal 5—Approve an Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to Eliminate Supermajority Voting Provisions

The Board is asking you to approve an amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to eliminate supermajority voting provisions. For a detailed description of this proposal, see “Proposal 5—Approve an Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to Eliminate Supermajority Voting Provisions” beginning on page 80.

Vote Required

The approval of Proposal 5 requires the affirmative vote of the holders of at least 66 2/3% of the voting power of the outstanding shares entitled to vote generally in the election of directors. Abstentions and broker non-votes will have the same effect as a vote against this proposal. Brokers do not have discretion to vote on this proposal without your instruction. If you do not instruct your broker how to vote on this proposal, it may result in a broker non-vote on this proposal.

Voting Procedures

Voting Rights of the Stockholders

Each share of our common stock is entitled to one vote on each matter to be acted upon at the Annual Meeting. Our stockholders are not entitled to cumulative voting rights, and dissenters’ rights are not applicable to the matters being voted upon at the Annual Meeting.

Only owners of record of shares of common stock at the close of business on March 24, 2025 (the “Record Date”), are entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting, or at any adjournments, postponements, or recesses thereof. There were 27,902,888 shares of common stock issued and outstanding on the Record Date.

				WINGSTOP INC. 2024 PROXY STATEMENT | 5

PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY

If your shares are held through a broker (typically referred to as being held in “street name”), you will receive separate voting instructions from your broker. You must follow the voting instructions provided to you by your broker in order to instruct your broker on how to vote your shares. Stockholders who hold shares in street name should generally be able to submit their voting instructions by returning the voting instruction card to their broker or by telephone or via the Internet. However, the availability of telephone or Internet voting will depend on the voting process of your broker.

With respect to each of the proposals to be acted upon at the Annual Meeting, you may vote as follows:

All properly executed written proxies, and all properly completed proxies submitted by the Internet or telephone, that are delivered pursuant to this solicitation will be voted at the Annual Meeting in accordance with the directions given in the proxy, and if such proxies do not direct how the shares should be voted, the proxy holder will vote your shares in accordance with the Board’s recommendations, unless the proxy is revoked prior to completion of the voting at the Annual Meeting. For details regarding how to revoke your proxy, see “— Revocability of Proxy” below.

Quorum

The presence, in person or by proxy, of the holders of a majority of the voting power of the issued and outstanding shares of common stock entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting is necessary to constitute a quorum to transact business at the Annual Meeting. Virtual attendance at the Annual Meeting constitutes presence in person for purposes of a quorum at the meeting.

Effect of Votes Withheld, Abstentions and Broker Non-Votes

Abstentions, broker non-votes, and votes withheld are included in the number of shares of common stock present for determining a quorum for all proposals.

The election of directors will be determined by a plurality of votes cast. As a result, votes “WITHHELD” will have no impact with respect to the election of directors, except that pursuant to our Corporate Governance Guidelines in order to be nominated for election, each of the director nominees has tendered an irrevocable resignation that becomes effective if (i) such nominee fails to receive more “FOR” votes than “WITHHELD” votes in an uncontested election of directors at an annual meeting and (ii) the Board accepts such resignation. For additional information concerning this policy, see “Proposal 1—Election of Directors—Vote Required; Director Resignation Policy for Failure to Receive Majority Vote in Election” on page 9.

Pursuant to our Bylaws, except as otherwise required by applicable law or regulation or by our Certificate of Incorporation, all matters before the Annual Meeting other than the election of directors are determined by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority in voting power of the shares of our common stock that are present in person or by proxy and entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting. An abstention is not an “affirmative vote,” but an abstaining stockholder is considered “entitled to vote” at the Annual Meeting. Accordingly, an abstention will have the effect of a vote against the Auditor Ratification Proposal and the Say-on-Pay Proposal, as applicable.

Under applicable stock exchange rules, brokers who hold shares on behalf of beneficial owners have the authority to vote on certain proposals when they have not received instructions from the beneficial owners. A broker non-vote occurs when a broker holding shares for a beneficial owner does not vote on a particular proposal because the broker does not have discretionary voting power with respect to that item under applicable stock exchange rules and has not received voting instructions from the beneficial owner.

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PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY

Your broker does not have discretionary authority to vote your common stock with respect to any proposal other than the Auditor Ratification Proposal in the absence of specific instructions from you. Where a broker does not have discretionary authority to vote your common stock, such broker is not considered “entitled to vote” with respect to a particular proposal at the Annual Meeting. Accordingly, a broker non-vote will have no effect on the Say-on-Pay Proposal. Broker non-votes are not applicable to the Auditor Ratification Proposal because your broker has discretionary authority to vote your common stock with respect to that proposal.

Pursuant to our Certificate of Incorporation, amendments to our Certificate of Incorporation, as detailed in Proposal 4 (Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to Declassify the Board) and Proposal 5 (Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to Eliminate Supermajority Voting Provisions), require the affirmative vote of the holders of at least 66 2/3% of the voting power of the outstanding shares entitled to vote generally in the election of directors. Accordingly, abstentions and broker non-votes will have the same effect as a vote against Proposal 4 and Proposal 5 because an absolute percentage of affirmative votes are required for these proposals.

Revocability of Proxy

Your proxy is revocable at any time before the polls close at the Annual Meeting. If you wish to revoke your proxy, you may:

Attendance at the Annual Meeting alone will not revoke a previously submitted proxy. If you are a beneficial owner of your shares and your shares are held through a broker, you must contact your brokerage firm, bank or other custodian to revoke any prior voting instructions.

Virtual Annual Meeting of Stockholders

This year’s Annual Meeting will be held virtually via live webcast. You are entitled to participate in the Annual Meeting only if you were a stockholder as of the Record Date or if you hold a valid proxy for the Annual Meeting. You will be able to participate in the Annual Meeting online and submit your questions prior to the meeting by visiting www.proxydocs.com/WING. You also will be able to vote your shares electronically at the Annual Meeting.

In order to attend the Annual Meeting, you must register in advance at www.proxydocs.com/WING prior to the deadline of May 19, 2025 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The control number located in the green box on the upper-right corner of your proxy card and/or voting authorization form will be required to register. Upon completing your registration, you will receive further instructions via email, including your unique link that will allow you access to the meeting, and you will have the ability to submit questions prior to the Annual Meeting. Please be sure to follow the instructions found on your proxy card and/or voting authorization form and subsequent instructions that will be delivered to you via email.

You can submit questions electronically prior to the Annual Meeting. During the Q&A session of the meeting, members of our management will answer the questions that were submitted in advance of the meeting, as time permits. To ensure the Annual Meeting is conducted in a manner that is fair to all stockholders, we reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to edit or reject questions we deem profane, repetitive, not relevant to the business of the Company, or otherwise inappropriate.

2026 Annual Meeting of Stockholders

Stockholder proposals submitted for inclusion in the proxy statement for our 2026 Annual Meeting of Stockholders pursuant to SEC Rule 14a-8 must be received by us by    , 2025, and must comply with the requirements set forth in SEC Rule 14a-8. Director nominations or other business to be brought before the 2026 Annual Meeting of Stockholders by a stockholder, other than Rule 14a-8 proposals described above, must be received by us between January 22, 2026 and

				WINGSTOP INC. 2024 PROXY STATEMENT | 7

PROXY STATEMENT SUMMARY

February 21, 2026, and must comply with the requirements set forth in our Bylaws. In addition to satisfying the requirements under our Bylaws, stockholders who intend to solicit proxies in support of director nominees other than the Company’s nominees must provide notice that sets forth the information required by Rule 14a-19 under the Exchange Act, no later than March 23, 2026. For more information, see “Next Annual Meeting—Stockholder Proposals” on page 82.

Solicitation Matters

Proxies are being solicited by the Board of Directors on behalf of the Company. We have hired Innisfree M&A Inc. (“Innisfree”) to provide us with consulting and analytic services and solicitation services for banks, brokers, institutional investors, and individual stockholders. Innisfree’s fee for these services is $20,000, plus reimbursement of reasonable out-of-pocket expenses. All costs of solicitation will ultimately be borne by the Company. We have agreed to indemnify Innisfree against certain liabilities and expenses, including liabilities under the federal securities laws.

Our officers, directors, and employees may also solicit proxies personally or in writing, by telephone, email, or otherwise. These officers, directors, and employees will not receive additional compensation but will be reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses. Brokerage houses and other custodians, nominees, and fiduciaries, in connection with shares of the common stock registered in their names, will be asked to forward solicitation material to the beneficial owners of shares of common stock. We will reimburse brokerage houses and other custodians, nominees, and fiduciaries for their reasonable out-of-pocket expenses for forwarding solicitation materials and collecting voting instructions.

Householding

In an effort to reduce our printing costs, mailing costs, and fees, we have elected to adopt the practice of “householding” proxy materials. Under this approach, if paper copies are requested, we will deliver only one copy of our fiscal 2024 Annual Report, this Proxy Statement, and/or Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, as applicable, to multiple stockholders who share the same address (if they appear to be members of the same family) unless we have received contrary instructions from the stockholders. Stockholders who participate in householding will continue to receive separate proxy cards if they receive a paper copy of proxy materials in the mail.

Upon written or oral request, we will promptly deliver a separate copy of our fiscal 2024 Annual Report, this Proxy Statement, and/or Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, as applicable, to a stockholder at a shared address to which a single copy of the documents has been delivered.

If you are (i) a stockholder, share an address and last name with one or more other stockholders, currently receive only one copy of proxy materials, and would like to revoke your householding consent and receive a separate copy of proxy materials, or (ii) a stockholder eligible for householding and would like to participate in householding, please contact Investor Relations at [email protected], (972) 686-6500 or Wingstop Inc., 2801 N Central Expressway, Suite 1600, Dallas, Texas 75204. You will be removed from the householding program within 30 days of receipt of the revocation of your consent.

A number of brokerage firms have instituted householding. If you hold your shares in “street name,” please contact your bank, broker or other holder of record to request information about householding.

Annual Report on Form 10-K

The Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 28, 2024 is included in the 2024 Annual Report that is being delivered, or made available electronically via the Internet, to stockholders with this Proxy Statement. Additional copies of the 2024 Form 10-K may be obtained free of charge by sending a written request to our Investor Relations department at the email or mailing address provided above under the caption “Householding.” The 2024 Form 10-K is also available on our Investor Relations website at https://ir.wingstop.com.

8 | WINGSTOP INC. 2024 PROXY STATEMENT

 

PROPOSAL 1—  ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

 

Our business and affairs are managed under the direction of our Board and its committees. Pursuant to our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws, our Board is required to consist of between three and fifteen directors divided into three classes, with the number of directors serving in each class to consist, as nearly as possible, of one-third of the total number of directors constituting the entire Board. The directors within each class serve on the Board for staggered three-year terms. Please see “Proposal 4—Approve an Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to Declassify the Board of Directors” for more information regarding management’s proposal to declassify the Board and provide for the annual election of directors.

Currently, our Board consists of 10 directors in the following classes:

Directors hold office until their successor is duly elected and qualified or until their earlier death, resignation, or removal. Our directors may only be removed for cause by the affirmative vote of the holders of at least 66 2/3% of our voting stock at a meeting of the stockholders called for that purpose. Please see “Proposal 5—Approve an Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to Eliminate Supermajority Voting Provisions” for more information regarding management’s proposal to eliminate supermajority voting provisions.

Board Nominees for Election at the Annual Meeting

The terms of Messrs. Anand, Goebel, Greco, and Hislop, each a Class I director, expire at the Annual Meeting. Upon the recommendation of our Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, Messrs. Anand, Goebel, Greco, and Hislop have been nominated for re-election. If elected, Messrs. Anand, Goebel, Greco, and Hislop will hold office for a three-year term expiring at the annual meeting of stockholders to be held in 2028.

Each director nominee has consented to being named in this Proxy Statement and to serve as a director if elected.

The persons named on the accompanying proxy card, or their substitutes, will vote the proxies for the election of the four nominees listed herein, except to the extent authority to vote for one or all of the nominees is withheld. No proposed nominee is being elected pursuant to any arrangement or understanding between the nominee and any other person or persons. If any of the nominees becomes unable or unwilling to serve, the persons named as proxies on the accompanying proxy card, or their substitutes, shall have full discretion and authority to vote or refrain from voting for any substitute nominees in accordance with their judgment.

Vote Required; Director Resignation Policy for Failure to Receive Majority Vote in Election

To be elected as a director, each director nominee must receive a plurality of the votes cast at the Annual Meeting. Nonetheless, pursuant to our Corporate Governance Guidelines, in order to be nominated for election, each of the director nominees has tendered an irrevocable resignation that becomes effective if (i) such nominee fails to receive more “FOR” votes than “WITHHELD” votes in an uncontested election of directors at an annual meeting and (ii) the Board accepts such resignation.

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PROPOSAL 1—ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee must consider the resignation and recommend to the Board the action to be taken with respect to the resignation. The director whose resignation is under consideration shall not participate in the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee’s recommendation with respect to the resignation. The Board is required to consider and act on the recommendation within 90 days following certification of the stockholder vote and will publicly disclose its decision whether to accept the resignation.

A copy of our Corporate Governance Guidelines is available on the investor relations section of our website at https://ir.wingstop.com.

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PROPOSAL 1—ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

Director Nominees for Terms Expiring at the 2028 Annual Meeting

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PROPOSAL 1—ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

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PROPOSAL 1—ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

Continuing Directors with Terms Expiring at the 2026 or 2027 Annual Meetings

The directors listed below will continue in office for the remainder of their terms and until their respective successor is duly elected and qualified or until their earlier death, resignation, or removal.

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PROPOSAL 1—ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

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PROPOSAL 1—ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

 

Board Composition and Director Independence

The following table provides information about each director currently serving on our Board of Directors, including the director nominees, and the composition of the Board committees.

Committee Membership

Name

Independent

Director Since

Director Class (Expiration of Current Term)

Audit

Compensation

Nominating and Corporate Governance

Technology

Lynn Crump-Caine

✓

2017

Class II (2026)

●

Krishnan (Kandy) Anand

✓

2018

Class I (2025)

●

David L. Goebel

✓

2017

Class I (2025)

●

Thomas R. Greco

✓

2024

Class I (2025)

●

●

Michael J. Hislop

✓

2011

Class I (2025)

●

●

Kate S. Lavelle

✓

2019

Class III (2027)

●

Kilandigalu (Kay) M. Madati

✓

2017

Class III (2027)

●

Wesley S. McDonald

✓

2016

Class II (2026)

●

●

Michael J. Skipworth

2022

Class III (2027)

Ania M. Smith

✓

2022

Class II (2026)

●

●

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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

We follow the director independence standards set forth in The Nasdaq Stock Market (“Nasdaq”) corporate governance standards and the federal securities laws. The Board has reviewed and analyzed the independence of each director based on those criteria and affirmatively determined that each of Mses. Crump-Caine, Lavelle, and Smith and Messrs. Anand, Goebel, Greco, Hislop, Madati, and McDonald qualifies as “independent” and also meets the definition of “non-employee director” for purposes of Rule 16b-3 promulgated under the Exchange Act, as applicable. In making this determination, the Board considered:

There are no family relationships between any of our directors or executive officers.

Please see “Proposal 4—Approve an Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation to Declassify the Board of Directors” for more information regarding management’s proposal to declassify the Board and provide for the annual election of directors.

				WINGSTOP INC. 2025 PROXY STATEMENT | 17

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Director Skills and Experience

Our Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee regularly evaluates the skills, qualifications, experience, and expertise of our directors to ensure that our Board has the right mix of such qualities to provide effective oversight to our Company. The matrix below depicts the skills, qualifications, experience, and expertise that our directors bring to the Board.

Corporate Governance experience supports our goals of strong accountability, transparency, and stockholder value protection

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

Executive Management experience is important for leadership ability and talent development

✓

✓

✓ (CEO)

✓ (CEO)

✓ (CEO)

✓

✓

✓

✓ (CEO)

✓ (CEO)

Financial & Accounting experience is important for overseeing our financial reporting and internal controls and for evaluating our capital structure

✓

✓

✓ (CFO)

✓ (CFO)

✓ (CFO)

International experience is valuable as the Company continues to extend its presence outside of the United States

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

Marketing experience is important in maintaining brand relevance and consumer engagement

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

Operations experience is important for ensuring best practices and executing initiatives

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

Restaurant Industry experience is important because it is the Company’s core business

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

Retail Industry experience is relevant for understanding consumer behavior

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

Risk Management experience is important for overseeing risks facing the Company

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

Strategic experience is important for competing in a dynamic market

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

Technology experience is important for enhancing consumer experience and internal operations

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

✓

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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Board Diversity

The table below provides certain information with respect to the composition of our Board, 50% of which is either female, ethnically diverse, or both.

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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Board Leadership Structure

Our Bylaws provide that the Board appoints the Chair of the Board to preside at all meetings of the Board and stockholders and to perform such other duties and exercise such powers as our Bylaws or the Board may prescribe. Ms. Crump-Caine serves as Chair of the Board, and Mr. Skipworth serves as our President and Chief Executive Officer. The Board believes that its current leadership structure, with the separation of the Chair and CEO positions, is appropriate and in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders. The Board believes that keeping these positions separate enables our Chair to lead the Board in its oversight and advisory roles and allows our CEO to focus on the Company’s day-to-day business operations and developing and implementing the Company’s business strategies. The Board believes that the separation of the roles enhances the ability of each person to discharge their duties effectively. In accordance with our Corporate Governance Guidelines, the Board assesses its leadership structure from time to time, using its business judgment after considering all relevant circumstances.

Pursuant to the Company’s Corporate Governance Guidelines, the non-management directors meet in executive session at least twice each year without any non-independent directors or members of management being present. Ms. Crump-Caine presides at these meetings of our non-management directors and provides significant outside perspective and leadership. In 2024, the non-management directors met in executive sessions at certain scheduled meetings of the Board without any non-independent directors or members of management being present.

A copy of our Corporate Governance Guidelines is available on the investor relations section of our website at https://ir.wingstop.com.

Succession Planning

Our Board leadership structure was the result of substantial succession planning efforts. Our Board has worked to recruit highly qualified directors and to establish a board structure that meets the needs of the Company and its stockholders. As a result of the Board’s succession planning efforts, our Board currently consists of 10 members, all of whom are independent, with the exception of Mr. Skipworth who serves as President and Chief Executive Officer.

The Board has overall responsibility for executive officer succession planning and discusses and reviews succession planning on a regular basis. In addition, the Board has established and regularly reviews a formal emergency governance plan to address succession planning in the event of a crisis.

Meetings of the Board of Directors

During the fiscal year ended December 28, 2024, our Board met six times. Each of our directors participated in at least 75% of the Board meetings and their respective committee meetings, and all of our directors attended the annual meeting of stockholders in 2024. Though the Board does not have a formal attendance policy, directors are strongly encouraged to attend Board meetings, their respective committee meetings, and the annual meeting of stockholders.

Board Committees and Membership

Our Board has established an Audit Committee, a Compensation Committee, a Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and a Technology Committee. Each committee reports to the Board as it deems appropriate and as the Board may request. The composition, duties, and responsibilities of these committees are described below.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee is responsible for, among other matters: (i) overseeing our accounting and financial reporting processes and audits of our financial statements; (ii) appointing, retaining, or terminating the independent auditors and approving audit engagement fees and terms; (iii) monitoring and evaluating the qualifications, performance, and independence of the independent auditors, and overseeing the work and independence of the independent auditors; (iv) reviewing significant changes in our selection or application of accounting principles, and major issues as to the adequacy of our internal controls; (v) reviewing significant legal, compliance, or regulatory matters that may have a

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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

material impact on our business, financial statements, or compliance policies; (vi) discussing with management our guidelines, policies and processes relied upon and used by management to assess and manage our exposure to risk, including, in conjunction with the Technology Committee, cybersecurity and other technology-related risks; (vii) overseeing our policy on related party transactions and reviewing related party transactions as required by such policy; (viii) establishing procedures for the receipt, retention, and treatment of complaints regarding accounting, internal accounting controls, or auditing matters; (ix) developing and overseeing our business conduct and compliance program; (x) reporting regularly to the Board, summarizing the committee’s actions and any significant issues considered by the committee, including any issues as to the quality or integrity of our financial statements or the audits thereof, our accounting and financial reporting processes, our compliance with legal or regulatory requirements, the performance, qualifications, and independence of our independent auditors, or the design and performance of our internal audit function; and (xi) annually reviewing the charter and the performance of the Audit Committee.

Our Board has affirmatively determined that Ms. Lavelle and Messrs. Greco, Madati and McDonald, meet the definition of “independent director” for purposes of serving on the Audit Committee under applicable SEC and Nasdaq rules. In addition, each of Ms. Lavelle and Messrs. Greco and McDonald qualify as, and have been designated as, an “audit committee financial expert,” as such term is defined in Item 407(d)(5) of Regulation S-K.

Our Board has adopted a written charter for the Audit Committee, a copy of which is available on the investor relations section of our website at https://ir.wingstop.com. Under the terms of the Audit Committee charter, the Audit Committee may form subcommittees and delegate its authority to those subcommittees as it deems appropriate. The Audit Committee held six meetings during the 2024 fiscal year.

Compensation Committee

The Compensation Committee is responsible for, among other matters: (i) setting the overall compensation philosophy, strategy, and policies for our executive officers and non-employee directors; (ii) reviewing and approving corporate goals and objectives relevant to the compensation of our Chief Executive Officer and other executive officers and evaluating performance in light of those goals and objectives; (iii) reviewing and determining the compensation of our non-employee directors, Chief Executive Officer, and other executive officers; (iv) making recommendations to the Board with respect to the adoption, terms, and operation of our incentive compensation plans and equity-based plans; (v) reviewing and approving compensatory agreements and other similar arrangements between us and our executive officers; (vi) interpreting, administering and making determinations under our incentive-based compensation recoupment policies; and (vii) annually reviewing the charter and the performance of the Compensation Committee.

Our Board has affirmatively determined that Messrs. Goebel, Greco, Hislop and McDonald and Ms. Smith meet the definition of “independent director” for purposes of serving on the Compensation Committee under applicable SEC and Nasdaq rules, as well as the definition of “non-employee director” for purposes of Rule 16b-3 promulgated under the Exchange Act.

Our Board has adopted a written charter for the Compensation Committee, a copy of which is available on the investor relations section of our website at https://ir.wingstop.com. The Compensation Committee held five meetings during the 2024 fiscal year.

Under the terms of the Compensation Committee charter, the Compensation Committee is authorized to engage independent advisors, at the Company’s expense, to advise the Compensation Committee on certain matters. The Compensation Committee may also form subcommittees and delegate its authority to those subcommittees as it deems appropriate. A description of the considerations and determinations of the Compensation Committee regarding the compensation of our named executive officers is contained in “Compensation Discussion and Analysis” below.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is responsible for, among other matters: (i) recommending to the Board the qualifications, qualities, skills, expertise, characteristics, and experience required for Board membership;

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(ii) identifying potential individuals whose qualifications and skills reflect those desired by the Board, and evaluating and recommending to the Board all nominees for election at annual meetings of stockholders or otherwise filling vacancies; (iii) evaluating and making recommendations to the Board regarding the structure, membership, and governance of the committees of the Board; (iv) developing and making recommendations to the Board with regard to our corporate governance policies and principles, including developing our Corporate Governance Guidelines; (v) reviewing and assessing our sustainability and environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) policies, goals, and initiatives; (vi) overseeing our sustainability and ESG-related regulatory compliance measures, including our compliance with legal, legislative and regulatory requirements, other than those related to accounting or financial reporting (which are the responsibility of the Audit Committee) and periodically reviewing legal, legislative and regulatory developments affecting sustainability and ESG disclosures; (vii) overseeing the annual review of the Board’s performance; and (viii) annually reviewing the charter and the performance of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.

Our Board has affirmatively determined that Mr. Anand, Ms. Crump-Caine and Mr. Goebel meet the definition of “independent director” for purposes of serving on the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee under applicable SEC and Nasdaq rules.

Our Board has adopted a written charter for the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, a copy of which is available on the investor relations section of our website at https://ir.wingstop.com. Under the terms of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee charter, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee may, in its discretion, delegate all or a portion of its duties and responsibilities to a subcommittee of the Committee, with any actions taken being reported to the Committee at the next scheduled meeting. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee held four meetings during the 2024 fiscal year.

Technology Committee

The Technology Committee is responsible for, among other matters: (i) reviewing our information technology strategy and investments; (ii) reviewing our technology-related performance metrics and achievements; (iii) overseeing our cybersecurity and technology-related risks and management efforts to monitor and mitigate those risks; and (iv) overseeing our response to technology-based threats and opportunities.

Though not required under applicable SEC and Nasdaq rules for purposes of serving on the Technology Committee, the Board has affirmatively determined that Messrs. Madati, Anand, and Hislop and Mses. Lavelle and Smith meet the definition of “independent director” under applicable rules.

Our Board has adopted a written charter for the Technology Committee, a copy of which is available on the investor relations section of our website at https://ir.wingstop.com. Under the terms of the Technology Committee charter, the Technology Committee may form subcommittees and delegate its authority to those subcommittees as it deems appropriate. The Technology Committee held three meetings during the 2024 fiscal year.

Board Oversight of Long-Term Growth Strategy

Our Board is responsible for overseeing our Company’s strategy for creating long-term growth. Our vision is to become a Top 10 Global Restaurant Brand. We believe there is opportunity for our brand to grow to 10,000+ restaurants globally. Our strategy is built upon the foundation of our culture, investing in people as our competitive advantage, and our global mindset. This strategy consists of three pillars:

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Our management team and the Board regularly review our long-term growth strategy. In addition, during the 2024 fiscal year, the Board held a meeting focused on strategy to discuss the Company’s long-term growth plan.

Risk Oversight

Our Board is responsible for overseeing our risk management. The Board focuses on our general risk management processes and the most significant risks facing us and oversees the management of those risks. Our management is responsible for day-to-day risk management, including identifying, evaluating, and mitigating potential risks that may exist at the enterprise, strategic, financial, operational, compliance, and reporting levels. Management keeps the Board apprised of particular risk management matters in connection with its general oversight and approval of corporate matters and significant transactions. In addition to the broad risk-oversight functions performed by the Board as a whole, the Board has tasked certain of its committees with the responsibility of evaluating risks associated with specific elements of the Company’s business, operations, or governance, or with evaluating management’s assessments of these risks. Each committee regularly reports to the Board important risk-management matters considered by that committee.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee is responsible for risk assessment and risk management and ensuring appropriate disclosure of risk factors in the Company’s public filings. Pursuant to its charter, the Audit Committee discusses with management and the Company’s independent auditor the Company’s policies with respect to risk assessment and risk management, the Company’s significant financial risk exposures and the actions management has taken to limit, monitor, or control such exposures.

Compensation Committee

The Compensation Committee is responsible for overseeing the management of risks related to the Company’s compensation policies and practices and for overseeing the evaluation of the Company’s executive management. The Compensation Committee annually reviews compensation policies and practices for all employees to confirm that they do not encourage unnecessary and excessive risk taking. The Compensation Committee also receives advice from FW Cook, its independent compensation consultant, regarding potential compensation-based risks.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee manages risks associated with the independence of the Board and oversees the annual self-evaluation of the Board and its committees. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee also reviews and discusses with management the operational, regulatory and reputational risks of ESG matters on the Company, including management of such risks and impacts.

Technology Committee

The Technology Committee oversees management of risks associated with the Company’s technology and technology infrastructure, management’s efforts to monitor and mitigate those risks, and, together with the Audit Committee, the Company’s cybersecurity risks. Members of the Company’s Information Technology team periodically provide risk reports to the Board and its committees, including assessments of the Company’s cybersecurity risks, their potential impact on our business operations, and management’s strategies to monitor and mitigate those risks. Additional information regarding our cybersecurity program can be found in our 2024 Annual Report.

Selection of Director Nominees

General Criteria and Process

It is the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee’s responsibility to review and recommend to the Board nominees for director and to identify one or more candidates to fill any vacancies that may occur on the Board. As

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expressed in our Corporate Governance Guidelines, the Company seeks to align Board composition with the Company’s strategic direction so that the Board members bring skills, experience, and backgrounds that are relevant to the key strategic and operational issues that they will oversee and approve.

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is responsible for determining criteria and qualifications for Board nominees to be used in reviewing and selecting director candidates, including those described in the Corporate Governance Guidelines. Directors are selected for their integrity, character, independent judgment, breadth of experience, insight, knowledge, and business acumen. As shown in the matrix under “Director Skills and Experience” above, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee considers a variety of selection criteria when identifying director candidates. These criteria will vary over time depending on the needs of the Board. Accordingly, the Board may adopt new criteria and amend or abandon existing criteria as and when it determines such action to be appropriate.

The Company is committed to fostering an environment of diversity and inclusion, including among its Board members. Therefore, in considering director nominees, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee considers candidates who represent a diversity of experience and personal backgrounds (including diversity related to age, sex, race, color, and national origin) that enhance the quality of the deliberations and decisions of the Board. 50% of our Board members are either female, ethnically diversity, or both. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee considers the effectiveness of our Board diversity efforts in connection with identifying and evaluating director nominees.

For each of the nominees to the Board, the biographies included in this Proxy Statement highlight the experiences and qualifications that were among the most important to the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee in concluding that the nominee should serve as a director. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee also believes that directors must be willing to devote sufficient time to carrying out their duties and responsibilities effectively and should be committed to serve on the Board for an extended period of time, and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will evaluate a Board candidate’s other commitments as part of its selection criteria.

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Stock Ownership and Retention Guidelines for Directors and Officers

Our Board has adopted stock ownership and retention guidelines that apply to our directors and officers, which provide that each officer must own a multiple of annual base salary in our common stock or qualifying derivatives and each independent director must own a multiple of the director annual cash retainer in our common stock or qualifying derivatives. The following table summarizes the requirements of our stock ownership and retention guidelines.

Clawback Policy

The Company has adopted a clawback policy for the recovery of incentive-based compensation to comply with Rule 10D-1 of the Exchange Act and the listing standards adopted by Nasdaq. Our clawback policy provides that, if we are required to prepare an accounting restatement due to our material noncompliance with any financial reporting requirement under the federal securities laws, we will seek to recover certain incentive-based compensation received by any current or former executive officer during the three completed fiscal years preceding the restatement date (as defined in the clawback policy). The amount to be recovered will be based on the excess of the amount paid under the award over the amount that would have been paid under the award had it been based on the restated amounts. The full clawback policy is disclosed as an exhibit to our Form 10-K filed on February 19, 2025, and each executive officer has signed an acknowledgement agreeing to be bound by the terms of the policy.

Further, our 2015 Omnibus Incentive Compensation Plan (the “2015 Omnibus Plan”), 2024 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the “2024 Omnibus Plan”), and Executive Severance Plan authorize the Compensation Committee to provide for the forfeiture or recoupment of a participant’s equity and cash awards in certain situations beyond what is required by applicable law and the Nasdaq listing standards, such as in the event of the termination of the participant’s employment for cause, serious misconduct, breach of noncompetition, confidentiality or other restrictive covenants, or other activity detrimental to our business, reputation, or interests.

Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation

The directors serving on the Compensation Committee during the fiscal year ended December 28, 2024 were Messrs. Goebel (Chair), Greco, Hislop, and McDonald and Ms. Smith. None of these individuals is, or has been at any time during the past year, an officer or employee of the Company. During the 2024 fiscal year, none of our executive officers served as a director of any corporation for which any of these individuals served as an executive officer and there were no other Compensation Committee interlocks or relationships with the companies with which these individuals or our other directors are affiliated.

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Communications with the Board of Directors

Any stockholder or other interested party who desires to communicate with the Board, a committee of the Board, the non-management/independent directors, the Chair, or other individual director may do so by writing to such director or group of directors at: 2801 N Central Expressway, Suite 1600, Dallas, Texas 75204, to the attention of the Secretary.

The communication must prominently display the legend “BOARD COMMUNICATION” in order to indicate to the Secretary that it is a communication for the Board. Upon receiving such a communication, the Secretary will promptly forward the communication to the relevant individual or group to which it is addressed. The Board has requested that certain items that are unrelated to its duties and responsibilities be excluded, such as spam, junk mail and mass mailings, resumes and other forms of job inquiries, surveys, and business solicitations or advertisements.

The Secretary will not forward any communication determined in his or her good faith belief to be frivolous, unduly hostile, threatening, illegal, or similarly unsuitable. The Secretary will maintain a list of each communication that was not forwarded because it was determined to be frivolous and will make such list available at the request of any member of the Board to whom such communication was addressed.

Stockholder Engagement

We are committed to continuously maintaining an open dialogue with our stockholders and engaging in a robust process to solicit feedback We recognize the value of two-way dialogue with our stockholders and regularly engage with investors in an effort to obtain input on how our strategy, risk management, sustainability and ESG policies, corporate governance, executive compensation and other matters may be better aligned with stockholder expectations. We regularly review general governance trends and emerging best practices and invite feedback from our stockholders, which is brought to our Board as part of its decision-making process. We engage with our stockholders in a variety of ways, including in one-on-one meetings and calls with stockholder representatives, in connection with our annual meeting of stockholders, and through our regular participation in industry conferences, investor road shows, and analyst meetings.

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Below is a chart summarizing some of the feedback that we received from our stockholders and our responses.

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Environmental, Social and Governance

At Wingstop, our mission is “To Serve the World Flavor.” It is a mission that we undertake quite literally with our 12 bold, distinctive flavors of chicken wings, tenders, and chicken sandwiches. This global mission aligns with how Wingstop approaches its ESG platform, Flavor for Good, as we seek to provide Wingstop’s distinctive flavor to Food, People, the Environment, and the Communities in which we do business. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee periodically reviews and assesses the Company’s ESG policies, goals and initiatives and makes recommendations to the Board as appropriate based on such review and assessment.

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Flavor for Food

We are committed to serving safe, high quality food that follows animal welfare guidelines and is sourced from suppliers that comply with industry standards and our code of conduct.

Flavor for People

We believe in fostering an inclusive, equitable, and diverse work environment that is intended to enable all team members to achieve goals and contribute. We are dedicated to a talent development and performance management process aimed to ensure that each of our team members has their own professional development plan to guide them through opportunities and help create their futures at Wingstop. We have implemented unconscious bias training for all of our corporate team members, including executive management, to facilitate respectful treatment of our guests and fair hiring and labor practices. We have made pay equity a key focus of our diversity and inclusion efforts, and we monitor and benchmark the pay practices of our peers.

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Flavor for Environment

Each Wingstop restaurant is designed and built in an environmentally conscious way. Our kitchen equipment, including fryers, water heaters, and line refrigeration units, are ENERGYSTAR^® or similar specification-rated. Additionally, all refrigeration is CFC and HCFC-free. We also specify energy-efficient LED lighting in our restaurants, which consumes only about 10% of the energy required by incandescent lighting. Our iconic metal wall finishes are made from 100% recycled materials, and we utilize high efficiency rooftop units for all HVAC as well.

In 2024, we partnered with a third party to determine our greenhouse gas emissions data in accordance with the GHG Corporate Accounting and Reporting Protocol. In analyzing our Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions data, and comparing such data to restaurant peer emissions data, we believe our average per restaurant emissions is a noteworthy differentiator for Wingstop.

Additionally, our Flavor for Environment initiatives include a robust waste management program, which is described in more detail below.

Flavor for Community

Wingstop Charities, a non-profit organization established in 2016, is committed to strengthening the communities that we serve by being strong, active corporate citizens and good neighbors. We’ve expanded our reach and impact by forming partnerships with No Kid Hungry, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and the American Red Cross, funded by the growth of our Round Up Program, which allows our guests to contribute to the great work of these organizations. Since its inception, Wingstop Charities has awarded more than 300 grants and contributed more than $6 million across three key programs: Community Grants, Team Member Assistance, and the Morrison Family Scholarship Program. To learn more about how Wingstop Charities is making an impact in our local communities, visit www.wingstopcharities.org.

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Director Compensation

Our director compensation program is designed to attract, motivate, and retain highly qualified directors and align their interests with those of our stockholders. We compensate non-employee directors with a combination of cash and equity awards as described below.

The Compensation Committee periodically reviews the director compensation program and recommends proposed changes for approval by the Board. As part of this review, the Compensation Committee considers the significant amount of time expended, and the skill level required, by each non-employee director in fulfilling his or her duties on the Board, each director’s role and involvement on the Board and its committees, and market data prepared by its independent compensation consultant, FW Cook.

The Compensation Committee reviews with FW Cook the competitiveness of the Company’s non-employee director compensation program, including annual cash and equity retainers for the non-employee directors and cash retainers for committee members. For 2024, our non-employee director compensation was as follows:

In addition to the annual cash retainers set forth above, in 2024, each of our non-employee directors was entitled to receive an annual equity award consisting of a number of shares of restricted stock having a total fair market value of $130,000 (or $190,000 in the case of the Chair of the Board) on the date of grant, with the date of grant being the date of our annual meeting of stockholders, and such shares of restricted stock vesting on the first anniversary of the date of grant. Restricted stock awards accrue dividend equivalents, which are paid at vesting. New directors appointed after the annual meeting of stockholders receive a pro-rated equity award. The 2024 Omnibus Plan limits the value of non-employee director equity awards to $400,000 per fiscal year per non-employee director.

Under our non-employee director compensation policy, we also reimburse directors for all reasonable out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with the performance of their duties as directors, including travel expenses in connection with Board and committee meetings.

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The following table sets forth the compensation earned by our non-employee directors during 2024. Mr. Skipworth, our Chief Executive Officer, does not receive additional compensation for his service as a director. See “Executive Compensation—Summary Compensation Table” for information concerning the compensation earned by Mr. Skipworth during 2024.

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Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions

Since January 1, 2024, there have not been any transactions in which (i) we have been a participant, (ii) the amount involved in the transaction exceeds or will exceed $120,000, and (iii) any of our directors, executive officers or holders of more than 5% of our capital stock, or any immediate family member of, or person sharing the household with, any of such individuals, had or will have a direct or indirect material interest (any such transaction, a “Related Party Transaction”).

Policies and Procedures With Respect to Related Party Transactions

In accordance with our Policy on Related Party Transactions, our Audit Committee is responsible for reviewing and approving Related Party Transactions. When considering proposed Related Party Transactions, the Audit Committee will take into account the relevant facts and circumstances and will approve only those transactions that are not inconsistent with the best interests of the Company and our stockholders. In addition, our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics requires that all of our employees and directors inform the General Counsel of any material transaction or relationship that comes to their attention that could reasonably be expected to create a conflict of interest. Further, at least annually, each director and executive officer will complete a detailed questionnaire that asks questions about any business relationship that may give rise to a conflict of interest and all transactions in which we are involved and in which the executive officer, director, or related person has a direct or indirect material interest.

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BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP OF  THE COMPANY’S SECURITIES

 

The following table sets forth certain information with respect to the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of February 28, 2025, for:

We have determined beneficial ownership in accordance with the rules of the SEC. Under such rules, a person is generally deemed to beneficially own a security if such person has sole or shared voting or investment power with respect to that security, including with respect to options, restricted stock units and other derivative securities that are currently exercisable or exercisable within 60 days of February 28, 2025. With respect to the different types of awards that we issue under our incentive plans:

Except as indicated in the footnotes below, we believe, based on the information furnished or available to us, that the persons and entities named in the table below have sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares of common stock that they beneficially own, subject to community property laws where applicable.

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BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP OF THE COMPANY’S SECURITIES

The applicable percentage ownership is based on 28,113,848 shares of common stock outstanding at February 28, 2025, which includes shares of unvested restricted stock that are or were subject to vesting conditions.

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PROPOSAL 2—  RATIFICATION OF THE APPOINTMENT  OF THE INDEPENDENT REGISTERED  PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

 

KPMG has served as our independent registered public accounting firm since 2019.

We are asking our stockholders to ratify the appointment of KPMG as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 27, 2025. Although ratification is not required by our Bylaws or otherwise, the Board is submitting the selection of KPMG to our stockholders for ratification because we value our stockholders’ views on the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm and as a matter of good corporate practice. In the event that our stockholders fail to ratify the appointment, it will be considered as a direction to the Board and the Audit Committee to consider the appointment of a different firm. Even if the appointment is ratified, the Audit Committee, in its discretion, may select a different independent registered public accounting firm at any time during the year if it determines that such a change would be in the best interests of the Company and our stockholders. A representative of KPMG will be present at the Annual Meeting, will have the opportunity to make a statement, and will be available to respond to appropriate questions by stockholders.

Information regarding fees paid to KPMG during fiscal years 2024 and 2023 is set out below in “Fees Billed by Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm” on page 40.

Vote Required

The approval of the Auditor Ratification Proposal requires the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority in voting power of the shares of our common stock that are present in person or by proxy and entitled to vote thereon. Abstentions will have the same effect as a vote against this proposal. Brokers have discretionary authority to vote on this proposal without your instruction. Virtual attendance at the Annual Meeting constitutes presence in person for purposes of the vote required.

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PROPOSAL 2—RATIFICATION OF THE APPOINTMENT OF THE INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

Report of the Audit Committee

The Audit Committee is responsible for, among other things, reviewing with our independent registered public accounting firm the scope and results of their audit engagement. In connection with the audit for the fiscal year ended December 28, 2024, the Audit Committee has:

Management is primarily responsible for Wingstop’s financial reporting process (including its system of internal control) and for the preparation of the consolidated financial statements of Wingstop in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”). Our independent registered public accounting firm is responsible for auditing those financial statements and issuing an opinion on whether the audited financial statements conform with GAAP.

The Audit Committee’s responsibility is to monitor and review these processes. It is not the Audit Committee’s duty or responsibility to conduct auditing or accounting reviews or procedures. Therefore, the Audit Committee has relied on management’s representation that the financial statements have been prepared with integrity and objectivity and in conformity with GAAP and on the representations of KPMG included in their report to the financial statements of Wingstop.

Based on the review and the discussions described in the preceding bullet points, the Audit Committee recommended to the Board of Directors that the audited financial statements be included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 28, 2024 for filing with the SEC.

Submitted by the Audit Committee (as of the fiscal year ended December 28, 2024):

Kate S. Lavelle, Chair

Lynn Crump-Caine

Thomas R. Greco

Kilandigalu (Kay) M. Madati

Wesley S. McDonald

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PROPOSAL 2—RATIFICATION OF THE APPOINTMENT OF THE INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

Fees Billed By Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

The following table sets forth the aggregate fees billed by KPMG during the fiscal years ended December 28, 2024 and December 30, 2023.

The Audit Committee has established policies and procedures for the approval and pre-approval of audit services and permitted non-audit services. The Audit Committee has the responsibility to engage and terminate our independent registered public accounting firm, to pre-approve the performance of all audit and permitted non-audit services provided to us by our independent registered public accounting firm in accordance with Section 10A of the Exchange Act, and to review with our independent registered public accounting firm their fees and plans for all auditing services. All fees paid to our independent auditors in fiscal years 2024 and 2023 were pre-approved by the Audit Committee and there were no instances of waiver of approval requirements or guidelines.

The Audit Committee considered the provision of non-audit services by the independent registered public accounting firm and determined that provision of those services was compatible with maintaining auditor independence.

For the aforementioned periods, there were no “reportable events” as that term is described in Item 304(a)(1)(v) of Regulation S-K.

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PROPOSAL 3—  ADVISORY VOTE TO APPROVE  EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

 

Pursuant to Section 14A(a)(1) of the Exchange Act, we are asking our stockholders to approve, on an advisory or non-binding basis, the compensation of our named executive officers as disclosed in this Proxy Statement. The vote on this matter is not intended to address any specific item of compensation, but rather the overall compensation of our named executive officers and the policies and practices described in this Proxy Statement.

Our Board and the Compensation Committee believe that we maintain a compensation program that is tied to performance, aligns with stockholder interests, and merits stockholder support. Accordingly, we are asking our stockholders to approve the compensation of our named executive officers as disclosed in this Proxy Statement by voting FOR the following resolution:

“NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the stockholders hereby approve, on an advisory basis, the compensation paid to the named executive officers of the Company, as disclosed pursuant to Item 402 of Regulation S-K in the Compensation Discussion and Analysis, the compensation tables, and the narrative discussion related thereto.”

Although this vote is non-binding, the Board and the Compensation Committee value the views of our stockholders and will review the results. If there are a significant number of negative votes, we will take steps to understand those concerns that influenced the vote and consider them in making future decisions about executive compensation.

Our annual Say-on-Pay Proposal vote is one way in which the Board receives feedback from stockholders regarding our executive compensation program. At our 2024 meeting, 96.1% of the votes cast voted to approve our Say-on-Pay Proposal.

An advisory vote on the frequency of stockholder votes to approve executive compensation is required to be held at least once every six years. The Company last held an advisory vote on frequency in 2024. After consideration of the vote of stockholders at the 2024 annual meeting of stockholders and other factors, the Board decided to hold annual advisory votes to approve executive compensation until the next advisory vote on frequency. Unless the Board modifies its policy on the frequency of future advisory votes to approve executive compensation, the next advisory vote to approve executive compensation will be held at the 2026 annual meeting of stockholders.

Vote Required

The approval of the Say-on-Pay Proposal, on a non-binding advisory basis, requires the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority in voting power of the shares of our common stock that are present in person or by proxy and entitled to vote thereon. Abstentions will have the same effect as a vote against this proposal. Brokers do not have discretion to vote on this proposal without your instruction. If you do not instruct your broker how to vote on this proposal, it may result in a broker non-vote on this proposal. A broker non-vote will have no effect on this proposal. Virtual attendance at the Annual Meeting constitutes presence in person for purposes of the vote required.

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EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

 

Below is information regarding our executive officers. Executive officers are elected annually by the Board to serve at the Board’s discretion until their successor is duly elected and qualified or until his or her earlier death, resignation, or removal. There are no family relationships between any of our directors or executive officers.

Michael J. Skipworth serves as our President and Chief Executive Officer. His business experience is discussed above in “Proposal 1—Election of Directors—Continuing Directors with Terms Expiring at the 2026 or 2027 Annual Meetings.”

Bradley T. Brewer has served as our Senior Vice President, Strategy and Chief of Staff since November 2024. Prior to joining Wingstop, Mr. Brewer served as a Vice President at YETI Holdings, Inc. from August 2021 to November 2024 where he led corporate strategy, analytics, and data science. Prior to joining YETI, Mr. Brewer was a Partner at Boston Consulting Group where he worked across a variety of industries and functions, specializing in digital transformation, analytics, and growth strategy. Mr. Brewer joined BCG after receiving his MBA from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business. Before pursuing his MBA, Mr. Brewer spent four years teaching Algebra and Geometry in Pharr-San Juan-Alamo ISD and three years with Andersen Windows in business development.

Marisa J. Carona has served as our Senior Vice President, Chief U.S. Franchise Operations and Development Officer since October 2024. Prior to this appointment, she served as our Senior Vice President, Chief U.S. Franchise Operations Officer from July 2022 to October 2024, our Senior Vice President, Chief Growth Officer from August 2021 to July 2022, and our Chief of Staff and Vice President of Strategy from July 2019 to August 2021. Ms. Carona joined Wingstop in February 2015 as Vice President, Global Operations Services where she led the training, guest experience, and operations integration teams. Prior to joining Wingstop, from May 2012 to February 2015, Ms. Carona led strategic initiatives within the innovation and supply chain functions at 7-Eleven, Inc., where she served on the financial planning and analysis team. Prior to that, Ms. Carona was at Lockheed Martin from July 2005 to May 2012, where she held various leadership roles within operations with a focus on continuous improvement and project management.

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EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

Mark E. Christenson has served as our Senior Vice President, Chief Revenue Officer since December 2024. Prior to joining Wingstop, Mr. Christenson served as an executive officer with extensive experience in brand management and strategic leadership at Proctor & Gamble from May 2004 until December 2024, where he held various leadership roles, most recently serving as Senior Vice President & General Manager of Global Feminine Care. Prior to joining Procter & Gamble, Mr. Christenson was a consultant at The Boston Consulting Group and served in the United States Navy, where his roles included financial analysis and engineering leadership on naval vessels.

Christopher Fallon has served as our Senior Vice President, Chief Information Officer since December 2023. Prior to joining Wingstop, Mr. Fallon was at Fortune Brands Innovations where he served as SVP, Chief Information Officer from November 2021 to July 2023. Prior to joining Fortune Brands Innovations, Mr. Fallon served at Starbucks Coffee Co. as Senior Vice President — Technology, Corporate, Customer Digital, Retail, Global Infrastructure Services from March 2016 to October 2021, Vice President — Technology, Business Systems Development from January 2013 to March 2016 and Director, Technology, Business Systems Development from October 2007 to January 2013.

Alex R. Kaleida has served as our Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer since August 2021. Prior to this appointment, he served as our Vice President, FP&A from March 2019 to August 2021, where his responsibilities grew over time to include leading and overseeing FP&A, internal audit and investor relations. Prior to joining Wingstop, he served in various finance and strategic leadership positions with increasing responsibility at The Wendy’s Company from January 2014 until March 2019, where he led Corporate FP&A and Operations Finance. Before Wendy’s, Mr. Kaleida held various positions at H.J. Heinz Company, where his responsibilities ranged from accounting to finance leadership roles across North American consumer products and food service business units as well as global strategy.

Rajneesh (Raj) Kapoor has served as our Senior Vice President, President of International since May 2023. Prior to joining Wingstop, he served as Senior Vice President, Fresh Food, Beverages, and Restaurants at 7-Eleven, Inc. from January 2018 to April 2023. Prior to that, he served in various roles at 7-Eleven, Inc. including Senior Vice President, Chief Information Officer from December 2016 to January 2018, Vice President, General Manager, Canada from December 2013 to December 2016, and Vice President, International from May 2011 to October 2013. Mr. Kapoor joined 7-Eleven, Inc. in 1995.

Albert G. McGrath has served as our Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary since March 2020. Prior to joining Wingstop, from October 2014 to March 2020, Mr. McGrath served as General Counsel of Fogo de Chão, Inc., a formerly publicly traded global operator of Brazilian steakhouses. Prior to that, Mr. McGrath was a partner at Baker McKenzie LLP from April 2000 to October 2014, where he focused on domestic and international transactions, corporate governance, and capital markets.

Donnie S. Upshaw has served as our Chief People Officer since December 2021 and began oversight of corporate restaurants as our Senior Vice President, Corporate Restaurants in July 2022. Prior to this appointment, he served as our Senior Vice President of People from November 2019 to December 2021. He joined Wingstop in April 2018 as Vice President of People. Before joining Wingstop, Mr. Upshaw served as Vice President of Human Resources for Credit Corp from March 2016 to April 2018, where he led initiatives that improved financial performance, fostered internal talent, and instilled a strong focus on employee culture and overall satisfaction. Prior to joining Credit Corp, from February 2015 to March 2016, Mr. Upshaw served as Director of Human Resources and Compliance at Energy Dispatch, a subsidiary of RaceTrac Petroleum Inc. Prior to that, Mr. Upshaw spent 10 years in various leadership roles at RaceTrac Petroleum Inc. across Human Resources, talent and operations.

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COMPENSATION  DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS

 

Named Executive Officers

This Compensation Discussion and Analysis (“CD&A”) provides you with a detailed description of our executive compensation objectives, philosophy and programs, the compensation decisions we have made under those programs, and the rationale and details supporting specific compensation decisions.

This CD&A focuses on the compensation of our named executive officers (our “named executive officers” or “NEOs”) for 2024. We review the roles and responsibilities of our officers and key employees on an annual basis and determine which of those individuals qualify as named executive officers. The names and titles of our named executive officers for 2024 are shown in the table below.

This section should be read in conjunction with the compensation tables below, which provide a detailed view of the compensation paid to our named executive officers in 2024. Throughout this section, we use the term Adjusted EBITDA, which is a non-GAAP measure. We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income before interest expense, net, income tax expense (benefit), and depreciation and amortization, with further adjustments for losses on debt extinguishment and financing transactions, transaction costs, costs and fees associated with investments in our strategic initiatives, system implementation costs, and stock-based compensation expense See Appendix I for a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure, to net income as reported under GAAP.

Executive Summary

Wingstop is the largest fast casual chicken wings-focused restaurant chain in the world, with more than 2,550 locations worldwide. We are dedicated to serving the world flavor through an unparalleled guest experience and offering of classic wings, boneless wings, tenders, and chicken sandwiches, always cooked to order and hand-sauced-and-tossed in 12 bold, distinctive flavors. We believe our simple and efficient restaurant operating model, low initial cash investment, and compelling restaurant economics help drive continued system growth through both existing and new franchisees and that our asset-light, highly-franchised business model generates strong operating margins and requires low capital expenditures, creating stockholder value through strong and consistent free cash flow and capital-efficient growth.

Highlights for Fiscal Year 2024

Highlights of Wingstop’s performance during fiscal year 2024 include, among other things:

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COMPENSATION DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS