Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) Price Target Raised to $5.00 at B. Riley Financial

Key Points

• B. Riley Financial raised Honest’s price target from $4.00 to $5.00 and maintained a “buy” rating, although the target was below the stock’s prior close. The broader analyst consensus remains “Hold,” with an average target of $3.85.
• Honest shares surged 38.3% to $5.32, near their 52-week high of $5.84. The company also exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.04 in EPS versus $0.01 expected and revenue of $80.19 million versus $77.83 million forecast.
• Insiders sold shares totaling about $550,591 over the past 90 days under pre-arranged trading plans, while institutional ownership stands at 45.54%.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST - Get Free Report) had its price target hoisted by research analysts at B. Riley Financial from $4.00 to $5.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "buy" rating on the stock. B. Riley Financial's target price would indicate a potential downside of 6.07% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Alliance Global Partners reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Honest in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley set a $3.40 target price on Honest in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $4.00 price objective on shares of Honest in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Honest from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Honest in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $3.85.

Honest Stock Up 38.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:HNST traded up $1.47 during trading on Thursday, reaching $5.32. The stock had a trading volume of 6,998,457 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,686,099. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $3.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3.15. Honest has a 52 week low of $2.07 and a 52 week high of $5.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $585.95 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -31.31 and a beta of 2.12.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $80.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $77.83 million. Honest had a negative net margin of 5.39% and a positive return on equity of 3.52%. On average, analysts forecast that Honest will post 0.1 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Honest

In other news, insider Stephen Winchell sold 12,886 shares of Honest stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.14, for a total value of $40,462.04. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 483,293 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,517,540.02. This trade represents a 2.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Curtiss James Bruce III sold 12,669 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.14, for a total value of $39,780.66. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 526,157 shares in the company, valued at $1,652,132.98. This trade represents a 2.35% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 175,058 shares of company stock valued at $550,591 over the last 90 days. 9.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of Honest by 28.4% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 223,099 shares of the company's stock worth $656,000 after purchasing an additional 49,342 shares during the period. Amicus Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Honest in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Alpine Global Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Honest in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $86,000. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Honest during the fourth quarter worth $448,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Honest by 45.9% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 186,991 shares of the company's stock worth $482,000 after acquiring an additional 58,784 shares during the period. 45.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Honest Company Profile

The Honest Company, Inc NASDAQ: HNST is an American consumer goods firm specializing in eco-friendly and responsibly formulated products for babies, personal care, beauty and home cleaning. The company emphasizes transparency in ingredient sourcing and product safety, positioning itself in the premium segment of mass-market retail and direct-to-consumer channels.

Honest was founded in 2011 by actress Jessica Alba and environmental health advocate Christopher Gavigan with a mission to offer parents household and baby care items free from harsh chemicals and synthetic fragrances.

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