Emerald Advisers LLC Purchases 352,228 Shares of National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE)

Emerald Advisers LLC increased its holdings in shares of National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE - Free Report) by 35.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,343,328 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 352,228 shares during the quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC owned about 1.71% of National Vision worth $17,168,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of EYE. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust raised its position in shares of National Vision by 29.7% in the 1st quarter. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust now owns 626,442 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,006,000 after buying an additional 143,556 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of National Vision in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $190,000. Banque Pictet & Cie SA acquired a new position in shares of National Vision in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $463,000. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of National Vision by 18.7% in the 1st quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,622 shares of the company's stock valued at $417,000 after buying an additional 5,144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of National Vision by 100.7% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 131,590 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,682,000 after buying an additional 66,015 shares in the last quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Ravi Acharya sold 12,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.75, for a total value of $225,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 2.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

National Vision Stock Performance

EYE traded up $0.08 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $25.34. 2,294,330 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,916,392. The firm has a market cap of $2.00 billion, a P/E ratio of -76.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 1.27. The stock's fifty day moving average is $21.35 and its 200 day moving average is $15.11. 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 Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $9.56 and a one year high of $25.52.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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. The company had revenue of $510.32 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $510.30 million. National Vision had a negative net margin of 1.40% and a positive return on equity of 3.44%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that National Vision Holdings, Inc. will post 0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on EYE. National Bankshares set a $30.00 price target on shares of National Vision in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of National Vision from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of National Vision from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $30.00 target price on shares of National Vision in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of National Vision from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $17.00 to $30.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.10.

National Vision 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.