National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) Stock Falls 4.9% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• National Vision shares fell 4.9% to about $16.92 in mid-day trading, with volume approximately 59% below the daily average.
• Analysts remain moderately bullish: seven rate the stock a Buy and four a Hold, producing a consensus price target of $29.82 versus the current price.
• The company exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.25 EPS versus $0.18 estimated, while revenue increased 2.6% year over year to $498.81 million.

National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE - Get Free Report) shares dropped 4.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The stock traded as low as $16.85 and last traded at $16.9210. Approximately 767,389 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 59% from the average daily volume of 1,849,821 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.80.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on EYE. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of National Vision from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on National Vision from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Citigroup lowered their price target on National Vision from $39.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Guggenheim set a $27.00 price target on shares of National Vision in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Finally, Roth Capital reissued a "buy" rating and set a $27.00 target price on shares of National Vision in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $29.82.

National Vision Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.40, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $17.24 and a 200-day moving average of $21.61.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.07. National Vision had a net margin of 2.47% and a return on equity of 6.78%. The business had revenue of $498.81 million for the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.18 earnings per share. National Vision's revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that National Vision Holdings, Inc. will post 0.65 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On National Vision

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of National Vision by 96.2% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,789 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in National Vision by 147.6% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,840 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,097 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of National Vision in the second quarter worth $38,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its position in National Vision by 416.9% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,047 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,651 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of National Vision by 56.8% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,531 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 917 shares during the last quarter.

National Vision Company Profile

National Vision Holdings, Inc is an optical retail company that provides prescription eyewear, contact lenses, eye examinations and related vision-care services. The company operates primarily in the United States through a network of retail optical locations and digital channels.

Its principal brands include America's Best Contacts & Eyeglasses, which offers eye exams, prescription glasses and contact lenses at value-oriented prices, and Eyeglass World, which provides similar products and services.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.