Sally Beauty (NYSE:SBH) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Research analysts at Wall Street Zen downgraded Sally Beauty from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating.
• Despite the downgrade, Sally Beauty has received mixed ratings from other firms, with one analyst issuing a Strong Buy rating and three others maintaining a Buy rating.
• Sally Beauty reported earnings of $0.51 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.42, although its revenue decreased by 1.0% year-over-year.

Sally Beauty (NYSE:SBH - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Sunday.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Sally Beauty in a report on Thursday, September 4th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Sally Beauty from $13.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Zacks Research raised shares of Sally Beauty from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of Sally Beauty from $15.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $13.88.

Sally Beauty Stock Up 3.8%

Shares of NYSE SBH traded up $0.58 on Friday, reaching $15.61. 769,504 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,162,417. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $12.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $10.16. Sally Beauty has a 12 month low of $7.54 and a 12 month high of $15.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The company has a market cap of $1.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.38 and a beta of 1.38.

Sally Beauty (NYSE:SBH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The specialty retailer reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.09. Sally Beauty had a net margin of 5.26% and a return on equity of 28.11%. The firm had revenue of $933.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $928.78 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.45 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sally Beauty has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Sally Beauty will post 1.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Max R. Rangel purchased 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $14.07 per share, for a total transaction of $49,245.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 3,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $49,245. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Denise Paulonis purchased 4,500 shares of Sally Beauty stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $11.74 per share, with a total value of $52,830.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 366,865 shares in the company, valued at $4,306,995.10. The trade was a 1.24% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought 10,500 shares of company stock worth $132,125 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.56% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sally Beauty

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SBH. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in Sally Beauty by 2,768.7% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,220,160 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $11,299,000 after acquiring an additional 1,177,626 shares in the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP increased its holdings in Sally Beauty by 160.3% during the 1st quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 1,889,310 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $17,060,000 after acquiring an additional 1,163,619 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Sally Beauty during the 1st quarter valued at about $8,600,000. Ranmore Fund Management Ltd increased its holdings in Sally Beauty by 54.6% during the 2nd quarter. Ranmore Fund Management Ltd now owns 2,196,020 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $20,335,000 after acquiring an additional 776,020 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CenterBook Partners LP increased its holdings in Sally Beauty by 359.3% during the 1st quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 961,230 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $8,680,000 after acquiring an additional 751,943 shares in the last quarter.

About Sally Beauty

Sally Beauty Holdings, Inc operates as a specialty retailer and distributor of professional beauty supplies. The company operates through two segments, Sally Beauty Supply and Beauty Systems Group. The Sally Beauty Supply segment offers beauty products, including hair color and care products, skin and nail care products, styling tools, and other beauty products for retail customers, salons, and salon professionals.