Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) has been upgraded to a "strong-buy" rating by Zacks Research, indicating a positive outlook from analysts.
• Despite the upgrade, Telsey Advisory Group and Morgan Stanley have both lowered their price targets for Honest shares, reflecting mixed sentiments among research firms.
• Insider trading activity shows significant stock sales, with corporate insiders reducing their holdings, while 45.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on HNST. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their price target on shares of Honest from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Honest in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Honest from $5.50 to $4.25 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $6.96.

Honest Price Performance

Honest stock opened at $3.78 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $420.60 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.62 and a beta of 2.29. Honest has a 1 year low of $3.32 and a 1 year high of $8.97. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $3.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $4.50.

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

Insider Activity at Honest

In other Honest news, insider Stephen Winchell sold 10,841 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.65, for a total transaction of $39,569.65. Following the transaction, the insider owned 410,257 shares in the company, valued at $1,497,438.05. This trade represents a 2.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Brendan Sheehey sold 12,059 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.65, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 2.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 131,890 shares of company stock valued at $481,399. 8.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Honest

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Honest by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,208,668 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,481,000 after purchasing an additional 61,299 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Honest by 98.8% during the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,073,471 shares of the company's stock worth $14,445,000 after purchasing an additional 1,527,080 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Honest in the 1st quarter valued at $10,554,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Honest by 10.5% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,068,945 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,532,000 after acquiring an additional 196,218 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Honest by 16.4% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,936,846 shares of the company's stock worth $9,103,000 after buying an additional 272,765 shares in the last quarter. 45.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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