National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) Hits New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday after BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on the stock from $13.00 to $19.00. BMO Capital Markets currently has a market perform rating on the stock. National Vision traded as high as $19.49 and last traded at $19.35, with a volume of 973737 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $19.22.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Loop Capital lifted their price target on National Vision from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of National Vision from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of National Vision from $13.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Barclays lifted their price objective on National Vision from $14.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of National Vision from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Ravi Acharya sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.75, for a total transaction of $225,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $219,375. This trade represents a 50.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in National Vision by 6.0% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 235,125 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,005,000 after acquiring an additional 13,384 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP increased its stake in shares of National Vision by 172.7% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 415,730 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,313,000 after purchasing an additional 263,308 shares in the last quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC bought a new position in National Vision in the 1st quarter worth $142,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in National Vision by 4.4% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 46,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $591,000 after purchasing an additional 1,948 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kettle Hill Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of National Vision in the first quarter worth approximately $1,535,000.

National Vision Trading Up 1.2%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.54 billion, a P/E ratio of -96.75, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $13.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.11.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. National Vision had a positive return on equity of 3.52% and a negative net margin of 0.81%. The firm had revenue of $510.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $510.30 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that National Vision Holdings, Inc. will post 0.31 EPS for the current year.

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.