The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation, three have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $6.9583.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on HNST shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Honest from $5.50 to $4.25 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 15th. Weiss Ratings cut Honest from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Saturday, October 25th. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their price target on Honest from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Honest from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th.

Honest Price Performance

HNST opened at $3.46 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $3.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4.39. The company has a market capitalization of $384.99 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 69.21 and a beta of 2.29. Honest has a 1 year low of $3.44 and a 1 year high of $8.97.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.02). Honest had a return on equity of 3.84% and a net margin of 1.66%.The company had revenue of $93.46 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $92.18 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Honest will post -0.07 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Honest

In related news, CEO Carla Vernon sold 99,328 shares of Honest stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.65, for a total transaction of $362,547.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,998,993 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,946,324.45. This trade represents a 3.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, General Counsel Brendan Sheehey sold 12,059 shares of Honest stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.65, for a total value of $44,015.35. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 568,588 shares in the company, valued at $2,075,346.20. This represents a 2.08% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 131,890 shares of company stock worth $481,399. 8.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Honest

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Honest during the first quarter worth $10,554,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Honest by 18.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,064,179 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,002,000 after purchasing an additional 163,380 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its position in shares of Honest by 68.2% in the first quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 272,284 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,280,000 after purchasing an additional 110,408 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of Honest in the first quarter worth approximately $3,550,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Honest in the first quarter worth approximately $341,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.54% of the company’s stock.

About Honest

The Honest Company, Inc manufactures and sells diapers and wipes, skin and personal care, and household and wellness products. The company also offers baby clothing and nursery bedding products. It sells its products through digital and retail sales channels, such as its website and third-party ecommerce sites, as well as brick and mortar retailers.