Banque Pictet & Cie SA Acquires New Shares in National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE)

Banque Pictet & Cie SA acquired a new stake in shares of National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 36,217 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $463,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of EYE. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of National Vision by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,411,838 shares of the company's stock valued at $108,491,000 after buying an additional 167,735 shares during the last quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of National Vision by 138.6% during the fourth quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 4,675,539 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,719,000 after buying an additional 2,715,582 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of National Vision by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,702,371 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,577,000 after buying an additional 30,235 shares during the last quarter. Engine Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of National Vision by 127.5% during the fourth quarter. Engine Capital Management LP now owns 2,528,053 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,342,000 after buying an additional 1,417,002 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in shares of National Vision by 81.5% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,308,375 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,053,000 after buying an additional 1,036,459 shares during the last quarter.

National Vision Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EYE traded up $0.55 during trading on Monday, reaching $25.01. 2,465,758 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,091,637. National Vision Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $9.56 and a 52-week high of $25.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The company has a 50-day moving average of $20.87 and a 200-day moving average of $14.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.98 billion, a P/E ratio of -75.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 1.27.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.02. National Vision had a positive return on equity of 3.44% and a negative net margin of 1.40%. The firm had revenue of $510.32 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $510.30 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.32 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that National Vision Holdings, Inc. will post 0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at National Vision

In related news, SVP Ravi Acharya sold 12,000 shares of the business's 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 directly owned 11,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,375. The trade was a 50.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on EYE. Bank of America lifted their target price on National Vision from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Wall Street Zen raised National Vision from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. National Bankshares set a $30.00 price objective on National Vision in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on National Vision from $13.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Citigroup raised National Vision from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $13.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, National Vision currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $22.10.

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.