Honest Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:HNST)

The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) saw some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Stock traders bought 3,982 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 110% compared to the typical daily volume of 1,897 put options.

Honest Trading Up 3.1 %

Shares of Honest stock traded up $0.13 during trading on Monday, reaching $4.31. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,041,704 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,089,189. Honest has a one year low of $2.40 and a one year high of $8.97. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $5.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $469.29 million, a P/E ratio of -104.63 and a beta of 2.44.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $99.84 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $96.46 million. Honest had a negative net margin of 1.13% and a negative return on equity of 3.26%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Honest will post -0.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $7.00 price objective on shares of Honest in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Loop Capital lowered Honest from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $7.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Honest presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $7.70.

Insider Activity

In other Honest news, SVP Jonathan Mayle sold 37,481 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.87, for a total value of $182,532.47. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 307,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,498,693.80. This represents a 10.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Stephen Winchell sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.98, for a total transaction of $99,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 431,844 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,150,583.12. The trade was a 4.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 8.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Honest

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HNST. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Honest in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Zacks Investment Management acquired a new stake in shares of Honest during the third quarter worth $37,000. New York State Teachers Retirement System bought a new stake in Honest in the fourth quarter valued at about $52,000. Utah Retirement Systems bought a new stake in Honest in the fourth quarter valued at about $86,000. Finally, Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in Honest in the fourth quarter valued at about $89,000. 45.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.