Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Herbalife (NYSE:HLF - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Friday.

Several other analysts also recently commented on HLF. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Herbalife from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson upgraded Herbalife from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $7.50 to $14.00 in a research note on Friday, March 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Herbalife has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $11.50.

Herbalife Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE:HLF traded down $0.03 on Friday, hitting $7.67. 497,500 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,323,978. The company has a market cap of $781.17 million, a PE ratio of 3.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 0.88. Herbalife has a 1 year low of $5.04 and a 1 year high of $12.79. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $7.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $7.18.

Herbalife (NYSE:HLF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. Herbalife had a net margin of 5.09% and a negative return on equity of 20.78%. Herbalife's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.49 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Herbalife will post 1.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Herbalife news, Director Juan Miguel Mendoza purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $6.73 per share, with a total value of $33,650.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 140,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $942,200. This represents a 3.70% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.73% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Herbalife

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HLF. Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in Herbalife by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 152,987 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,320,000 after purchasing an additional 6,081 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Herbalife by 3.3% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 210,904 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,820,000 after buying an additional 6,747 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Herbalife by 12.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 30,301 shares of the company's stock valued at $261,000 after buying an additional 3,474 shares during the period. Tenzing Global Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Herbalife in the first quarter valued at about $6,904,000. Finally, Parallax Volatility Advisers L.P. acquired a new stake in Herbalife during the first quarter worth about $790,000.

Herbalife Company Profile

Herbalife Ltd. provides health and wellness products in North America, Mexico, South and Central America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, China, and the Asia Pacific. It offers products in the areas of weight management; targeted nutrition; energy, sports, and fitness; outer nutrition; and literature and promotional items.