Stephens analyst Will Slabaugh said he likes the "quality and consistency" of Ruth's Hospitality's model and he expects a strong Q4 and 2020 from the company after it posted better than expected earnings and same-store sales growth in Q3. He noted the company repurchased approximately $13.5M worth of shares in Q3 and he expects an accelerated rate of buybacks to continue into 2020. Though he thinks fundamentals are solid and repurchase activity "will help," Slabaugh keeps an Equal Weight rating and $24 price target on Ruth's shares, which are up $3.84, or 19%, to $24.42 in late day trading.