Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) Given Average Rating of "Reduce" by Brokerages

Shares of Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Reduce" by the five brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and four have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $10.50.

Several research analysts have issued reports on HLF shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Herbalife from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Herbalife from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 21st. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on Herbalife from $11.00 to $9.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on Herbalife from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 21st.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Michael Johnson bought 61,725 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $8.07 per share, for a total transaction of $498,120.75. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 603,707 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,871,915.49. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Henry C. Wang acquired 2,778 shares of Herbalife stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $9.30 per share, with a total value of $25,835.40. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president now owns 176,194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,638,604.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Johnson bought 61,725 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $8.07 per share, for a total transaction of $498,120.75. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 603,707 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,871,915.49. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 85,757 shares of company stock valued at $723,278 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.94% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Herbalife

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. PEAK6 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Herbalife during the 3rd quarter valued at $146,000. DGS Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Herbalife during the 4th quarter worth about $165,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Herbalife in the 4th quarter valued at about $184,000. Corton Capital Inc. raised its stake in Herbalife by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Corton Capital Inc. now owns 17,849 shares of the company's stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 1,654 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas purchased a new position in Herbalife in the 4th quarter valued at about $258,000.

Herbalife Trading Down 3.5 %

Shares of Herbalife stock traded down $0.32 on Thursday, hitting $8.88. The stock had a trading volume of 1,149,870 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,228,344. The stock has a market cap of $885.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.21 and a beta of 1.22. Herbalife has a 52-week low of $6.68 and a 52-week high of $19.48. The company's 50 day moving average price is $8.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.80.

Herbalife (NYSE:HLF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.19 billion. Herbalife had a net margin of 2.81% and a negative return on equity of 19.56%. Herbalife's quarterly revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.53 EPS. Analysts predict that Herbalife will post 1.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Herbalife

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.