Nature's Sunshine Products (NASDAQ:NATR) Shares Break Below 200 Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Key Points

• Nature’s Sunshine Products shares fell below their 200-day moving average of $20.04, trading as low as $12.31 and last changing hands at $12.40.
• The company reported quarterly earnings of $0.21 per share and revenue of $116.99 million, missing analyst estimates of $0.27 per share and $123.70 million, respectively.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautiously positive, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and $30.50 average price target, while insiders and institutional investors continued adding to their positions.

Nature's Sunshine Products, Inc. (NASDAQ:NATR - Get Free Report) crossed below its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $20.04 and traded as low as $12.31. Nature's Sunshine Products shares last traded at $12.40, with a volume of 126,917 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NATR. DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of Nature's Sunshine Products from $33.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Nature's Sunshine Products from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 16th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Nature's Sunshine Products from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on Nature's Sunshine Products from $37.00 to $36.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $30.50.

Nature's Sunshine Products Stock Down 0.4%

The firm has a market cap of $218.24 million, a P/E ratio of 12.28 and a beta of 0.81. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $14.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.04.

Nature's Sunshine Products (NASDAQ:NATR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $116.99 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $123.70 million. Nature's Sunshine Products had a net margin of 3.68% and a return on equity of 12.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Prescott Group Capital Managem bought 96,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $16.63 per share, with a total value of $1,596,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,883,610 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,324,434.30. This represents a 5.37% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders acquired 161,389 shares of company stock worth $2,612,536 over the last three months. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NATR. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its holdings in Nature's Sunshine Products by 134.3% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 27,071 shares of the company's stock worth $590,000 after acquiring an additional 15,518 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Nature's Sunshine Products during the second quarter worth about $436,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Nature's Sunshine Products during the second quarter worth about $390,000. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Nature's Sunshine Products in the second quarter worth about $7,412,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Nature's Sunshine Products in the second quarter valued at approximately $263,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.40% of the company's stock.

About Nature's Sunshine Products

Nature's Sunshine Products, Inc is a natural health and wellness company that develops, manufactures and distributes nutritional supplements and related products. Its portfolio includes herbal supplements, vitamins, minerals, specialty nutrition products, personal care items, essential oils and products focused on areas such as sports nutrition and weight management.

The company markets products under the Nature's Sunshine and Synergy WorldWide brands. It sells through direct-selling and other distribution channels, serving customers in the United States and international markets, including countries in Europe, Asia and Latin America.

Founded in 1972, Nature's Sunshine Products has emphasized ingredient sourcing, product formulation and in-house manufacturing as parts of its business model.

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