Nature’s Sunshine Products (NASDAQ:NATR) Price Target Lowered to $36.00 at Canaccord Genuity Group

Nature’s Sunshine Products (NASDAQ:NATR) had its price objective decreased by Canaccord Genuity Group from $37.00 to $36.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Canaccord Genuity Group currently has a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on the company. DA Davidson upgraded Nature’s Sunshine Products to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Nature’s Sunshine Products from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $34.50.

Nature’s Sunshine Products Stock Performance

NASDAQ:NATR opened at $20.29 on Thursday. Nature’s Sunshine Products has a one year low of $12.97 and a one year high of $28.14. The firm has a market cap of $356.70 million, a P/E ratio of 18.45 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.63.

Nature’s Sunshine Products (NASDAQ:NATR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $122.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $122.15 million. Nature’s Sunshine Products had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 14.67%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Nathan G. Brower sold 12,015 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.84, for a total transaction of $262,407.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 43,438 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $948,685.92. This represents a 21.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Kevin R. Herbert sold 2,000 shares of Nature’s Sunshine Products stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.68, for a total transaction of $41,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 48,866 shares in the company, valued at $1,010,548.88. This represents a 3.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 35,696 shares of company stock valued at $742,407 over the last 90 days. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nature’s Sunshine Products

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NATR. Boston Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Nature’s Sunshine Products in the 4th quarter worth $4,544,000. Manatuck Hill Partners LLC acquired a new position in Nature’s Sunshine Products during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,923,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in Nature’s Sunshine Products by 268.9% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 171,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,123,000 after buying an additional 125,264 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Nature’s Sunshine Products by 15.3% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 803,104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,464,000 after buying an additional 106,688 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Nature’s Sunshine Products by 44.4% in the first quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 316,867 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,602,000 after buying an additional 97,397 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.40% of the company’s stock.

Nature’s Sunshine Products Company Profile

Nature’s Sunshine Products, Inc is a global manufacturer and direct seller of nutritional supplements, herbal remedies, and personal care products. The company’s core business centers on research, development and distribution of vitamins, minerals, botanicals and essential oil-based formulations designed to support overall health and wellness. Operating under a network-marketing model, Nature’s Sunshine works through a network of independent distributors who promote and sell its product line directly to consumers.

The company’s product portfolio spans dietary supplements such as single-ingredient vitamins, proprietary herbal blends, sports nutrition formulas and weight-management solutions, along with skin and hair care items based on botanical extracts and essential oils.