Helen of Troy (NASDAQ:HELE) Shares Gap Up After Strong Earnings

Shares of Helen of Troy Limited (NASDAQ:HELE) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $62.37, but opened at $73.66. Helen of Troy shares last traded at $76.14, with a volume of 1,312,963 shares trading hands.

The company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $474.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $458.85 million. Helen of Troy had a net margin of 7.35% and a return on equity of 9.31%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.45 EPS.

Helen of Troy announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, September 5th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 39.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HELE has been the topic of several research reports. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $84.00 price objective on shares of Helen of Troy in a report on Monday. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Helen of Troy from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Helen of Troy from $100.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Helen of Troy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Helen of Troy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in Helen of Troy by 5.3% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,239 shares of the company’s stock valued at $258,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Helen of Troy by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,271 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,299,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Helen of Troy by 374.6% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 280 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its position in Helen of Troy by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 5,434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $626,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares during the period. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC increased its position in Helen of Troy by 11.5% in the 1st quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 2,520 shares of the company’s stock valued at $290,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the period.

Helen of Troy Trading Down 1.6 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.77 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company has a market cap of $1.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.86. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $56.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $80.60.

Helen of Troy Company Profile

Helen of Troy Limited provides various consumer products in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company operates in two segments: Home & Outdoor and Beauty & Wellness. The Home & Outdoor segment offers food storage containers, kitchen utensils for cooking and preparing salads, fruits, vegetables and meats, graters, slicers and choppers, baking essentials, kitchen organization, bath, cleaning, infant and toddler products, and coffee preparation tools and electronics; and insulated beverageware, including bottles, travel tumblers, drinkware, mugs, food and lunch containers, insulated totes, soft coolers, outdoor kitchenware, and accessories.