Northern Trust Corp Grows Stake in National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE)

Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE - Free Report) by 11.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 862,481 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 90,466 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 1.10% of National Vision worth $8,987,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of National Vision by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,411,838 shares of the company's stock valued at $108,491,000 after purchasing an additional 167,735 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in National Vision by 0.8% in the 4th 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 period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of National Vision by 81.5% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,308,375 shares of the company's stock worth $24,053,000 after acquiring an additional 1,036,459 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of National Vision by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,583,131 shares of the company's stock worth $16,496,000 after acquiring an additional 170,839 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners acquired a new stake in shares of National Vision in the fourth quarter valued at $12,594,000.

National Vision Stock Performance

EYE traded up $0.11 during trading on Friday, hitting $18.85. 1,518,696 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,813,467. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a P/E ratio of -94.25, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.02. National Vision Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $9.56 and a 1-year high of $19.49. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $13.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 negative net margin of 0.81% and a positive return on equity of 3.52%. The business had revenue of $510.32 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $510.30 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that National Vision Holdings, Inc. will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on EYE shares. Loop Capital increased their price objective on shares of National Vision from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on National Vision from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on National Vision from $13.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Bank of America raised National Vision from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, 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. Five equities 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, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $17.75.

Insider Activity at National Vision

In other National Vision news, SVP Ravi Acharya sold 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $219,375. The trade was a 50.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.