Vera Bradley's (VRA) "Sell (D-)" Rating Reiterated at Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• Vera Bradley's stock has been reiterated with a "sell (D-)" rating by Weiss Ratings, indicating potential caution for investors.
• Despite a recent upgrade from Zacks Research to a "hold" rating, the overall consensus remains a "Reduce" rating from various analysts.
• Vera Bradley reported a loss of ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, surpassing the expected loss, but with revenues falling short of estimates at $70.86 million.

Vera Bradley (NASDAQ:VRA - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell (d-)" rating reissued by research analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

VRA has been the subject of several other research reports. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Vera Bradley from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Small Cap Consu upgraded shares of Vera Bradley to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vera Bradley currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce".

Vera Bradley Trading Down 1.9%

NASDAQ:VRA traded down $0.04 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $2.05. 101,998 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 257,880. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $2.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $2.10. The company has a current ratio of 2.43, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. Vera Bradley has a fifty-two week low of $1.71 and a fifty-two week high of $5.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.28 million, a P/E ratio of -0.58 and a beta of 1.85.

Vera Bradley (NASDAQ:VRA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 11th. The textile maker reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.15) by $0.13. Vera Bradley had a negative net margin of 32.31% and a negative return on equity of 15.27%. The business had revenue of $70.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $78.52 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.13 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Vera Bradley will post -0.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vera Bradley

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Williams & Novak LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vera Bradley by 48.3% in the 2nd quarter. Williams & Novak LLC now owns 20,170 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 6,565 shares during the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vera Bradley by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 138,083 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $305,000 after buying an additional 7,478 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Vera Bradley by 12.9% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 67,748 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $152,000 after buying an additional 7,747 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Vera Bradley in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vera Bradley in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. 59.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Vera Bradley

Vera Bradley, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells women's handbags, luggage and travel items, fashion and home accessories, and gifts. It operates through three segments: Vera Bradley Direct, Vera Bradley Indirect, and Pura Vida. The company offers bag products, such as totes, crossbodies, satchels, clutches, backpacks, baby bags, and lunch bags; accessories, including ID holders, lanyards, wallets, wristlets, eyewear, scarves, hair accessories, and various technology accessories; bracelets, rings, and necklaces under Pura Vida brand name; and travel products consist of rolling luggage, cosmetics, and travel and packing accessories, as well as travel bags comprising duffel and weekend bags.

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