USANA Health Sciences (NYSE:USNA) Raised to "Strong-Buy" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded USANA Health Sciences from a "hold" to a "strong-buy," while other analysts remain mixed (Wall Street Zen upgraded to "buy," Weiss Ratings kept a "sell"), leaving a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."
• USANA beat quarterly EPS estimates ($0.60 vs. $0.41) with revenue roughly in line at $226.2M; the stock trades around $18.50, with a market cap of about $341.5M and a P/E of 33.6.
• Insider Joshua Foukas sold 4,461 shares (~$95k), even as institutional investors increased positions (institutional ownership ~54.25%), indicating mixed insider and institutional activity.

USANA Health Sciences (NYSE:USNA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on USNA. Wall Street Zen upgraded USANA Health Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of USANA Health Sciences in a report on Friday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

USANA Health Sciences Stock Up 1.8%

NYSE:USNA opened at $18.50 on Monday. USANA Health Sciences has a 1-year low of $16.60 and a 1-year high of $38.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $341.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $20.23.

USANA Health Sciences (NYSE:USNA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.19. USANA Health Sciences had a return on equity of 6.75% and a net margin of 1.16%.The business had revenue of $226.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $225.96 million. Equities analysts predict that USANA Health Sciences will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at USANA Health Sciences

In related news, insider Joshua Foukas sold 4,461 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.34, for a total value of $95,197.74. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.63% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in USNA. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of USANA Health Sciences by 82.8% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 21,845 shares of the company's stock valued at $589,000 after acquiring an additional 9,894 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of USANA Health Sciences in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $687,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in shares of USANA Health Sciences by 31.4% in the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 13,377 shares of the company's stock valued at $408,000 after acquiring an additional 3,198 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its stake in shares of USANA Health Sciences by 19.5% in the 2nd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 3,957 shares of the company's stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 646 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new position in shares of USANA Health Sciences in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $422,000. 54.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

USANA Health Sciences Company Profile

USANA Health Sciences, Inc is a Utah‐based company that develops, manufactures and distributes nutritional supplements and personal care products through a network of independent distributors. Founded in 1992 by Dr. Myron Wentz, the company's portfolio includes vitamins, minerals, dietary supplements, weight‐management products and skin‐care formulations. USANA's products are formulated in its own laboratories to meet pharmaceutical‐grade standards, and the company has invested heavily in research and development and quality control to support its offerings.

Operating primarily through a direct selling model, USANA serves markets in North America, Asia Pacific, Europe and Latin America.

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