The Honest Company, Inc. $HNST Shares Bought by Trexquant Investment LP

Key Points

• Trexquant Investment LP increased its holdings in The Honest Company by 23.5%, owning 442,831 shares valued at approximately $2.08 million.
• Multiple institutional investors, including Summit Securities Group and Aigen Investment Management, have significantly raised their stakes in The Honest Company during the first quarter.
• Analysts have set a consensus price target of $6.96 for Honest, with ratings ranging from "Buy" to "Hold," indicating mixed confidence in the stock's performance.

Trexquant Investment LP boosted its holdings in The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST - Free Report) by 23.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 442,831 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 84,226 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP owned about 0.40% of Honest worth $2,081,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in Honest by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 46,706 shares of the company's stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 2,761 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in Honest by 3.8% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 114,087 shares of the company's stock valued at $536,000 after purchasing an additional 4,144 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Honest by 11,727.8% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,258 shares of the company's stock valued at $200,000 after purchasing an additional 4,222 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Honest by 57.9% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,757 shares of the company's stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 6,513 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC boosted its holdings in Honest by 6,101.8% in the first quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 6,822 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 6,712 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.54% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Honest

In related news, insider Stephen Winchell sold 10,841 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.65, for a total value of $39,569.65. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 410,257 shares in the company, valued at $1,497,438.05. This trade represents a 2.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Brendan Sheehey sold 12,059 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.65, for a total value of $44,015.35. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 568,588 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,075,346.20. This represents a 2.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 131,890 shares of company stock worth $481,399 in the last three months. 8.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HNST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded Honest from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Honest from $5.50 to $4.25 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reduced their target price on Honest from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $6.96.

Honest Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HNST traded down $0.15 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $3.79. The company had a trading volume of 3,801,807 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,262,247. The stock has a market cap of $421.71 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.82 and a beta of 2.32. The Honest Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $3.32 and a 12 month high of $8.97. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $4.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $4.67.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $93.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $92.18 million. Honest had a return on equity of 3.84% and a net margin of 1.66%. Equities analysts forecast that The Honest Company, Inc. will post -0.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Honest Company Profile

The Honest Company, Inc manufactures and sells diapers and wipes, skin and personal care, and household and wellness products. The company also offers baby clothing and nursery bedding products. It sells its products through digital and retail sales channels, such as its website and third-party ecommerce sites, as well as brick and mortar retailers.