National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the nine research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $18.67.

Several research analysts recently commented on EYE shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of National Vision from $13.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of National Vision from $14.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Loop Capital increased their target price on shares of National Vision from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. BMO Capital Markets set a $19.00 target price on shares of National Vision and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of National Vision from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Ravi Acharya sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.75, for a total transaction of $225,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 11,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,375. This trade represents a 50.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of National Vision

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of National Vision during the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of National Vision by 69.3% during the 1st quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,004 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in shares of National Vision by 87.5% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,050 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 3,291 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of National Vision by 49.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 2,412 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teza Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of National Vision during the 1st quarter valued at $142,000.

National Vision Stock Down 0.5%

National Vision stock opened at $22.88 on Friday. National Vision has a twelve month low of $9.56 and a twelve month high of $23.33. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $17.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $13.62. The company has a market capitalization of $1.81 billion, a P/E ratio of -69.33, a P/E/G ratio of 6.66 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.02. National Vision had a negative net margin of 1.40% and a positive return on equity of 3.44%. The firm had revenue of $510.32 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $510.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.32 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that National Vision will post 0.31 EPS for the current year.

About National Vision

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.