Raymond James & Associates Cuts Stock Position in National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE)

Raymond James & Associates decreased its position in shares of National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) by 24.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,709 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,528 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in National Vision were worth $894,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of National Vision during the third quarter valued at about $1,103,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP grew its position in shares of National Vision by 64.0% during the third quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 136,763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,213,000 after purchasing an additional 53,394 shares in the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP grew its position in shares of National Vision by 20.5% during the third quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 184,765 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,989,000 after purchasing an additional 31,473 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its position in shares of National Vision by 40.4% during the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 133,176 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,155,000 after purchasing an additional 38,292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of National Vision by 13.9% during the third quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 10,066,548 shares of the company’s stock valued at $162,877,000 after purchasing an additional 1,228,933 shares in the last quarter.

National Vision Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:EYE opened at $18.44 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. National Vision Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $13.71 and a 12 month high of $27.02. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $21.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.59. The company has a market cap of $1.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -21.69, a PEG ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.39.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by $0.07. National Vision had a negative net margin of 3.10% and a positive return on equity of 3.69%. The firm had revenue of $506.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $499.49 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.11) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that National Vision Holdings, Inc. will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of National Vision from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.86.

National Vision Company Profile

National Vision Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an optical retailer in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Owned & Host and Legacy. It offers eyeglasses and contact lenses, and optical accessory products; provides eye exams through its America's Best, Eyeglass World, Vista Optical, Fred Meyer, and Vista Optical military, as well as Vision Center branded stores; and offers health maintenance organization and optometric services.