National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with four holds and six buys among ten ratings firms covering the stock.
• The average one-year target price from these brokerages stands at $24.73, with recent targets varying from a high of $30.00 to a low of $19.00.
• In its latest quarterly earnings report, National Vision reported earnings per share of $0.18, surpassing consensus estimates by $0.06, and achieved a revenue of $486.42 million, exceeding expectations as well.

Shares of National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the ten analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $24.7273.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on EYE shares. Barclays lowered their target price on National Vision from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on National Vision from $17.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Roth Capital began coverage on National Vision in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $36.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets set a $19.00 price objective on National Vision and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $30.00 price objective on shares of National Vision in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th.

Insider Transactions at National Vision

In related news, Chairman L Reade Fahs sold 137,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.33, for a total value of $3,342,942.00. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 544,795 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,254,862.35. The trade was a 20.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On National Vision

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC bought a new stake in National Vision in the 2nd quarter valued at about $676,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in shares of National Vision by 70.2% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 98,442 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,265,000 after buying an additional 40,599 shares during the period. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of National Vision during the second quarter valued at about $405,000. General Equity Holdings LP bought a new stake in shares of National Vision during the second quarter valued at about $1,841,000. Finally, Castleark Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of National Vision during the second quarter valued at about $5,878,000.

National Vision Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EYE traded down $0.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $22.94. 2,347,031 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,419,558. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -127.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.23. National Vision has a 52 week low of $9.56 and a 52 week high of $25.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $24.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.16.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $486.42 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $469.21 million. National Vision had a positive return on equity of 3.56% and a negative net margin of 0.75%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.15 EPS. Analysts predict that National Vision will post 0.31 EPS for the current year.

About National Vision

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.