Warby Parker Inc. (NYSE:WRBY) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts are moderately bullish on Warby Parker, with 14 covering the stock and an average rating of “Moderate Buy.” The consensus 12-month price target is $29.50, with nine buy ratings and five hold ratings.
• Insider selling has been notable recently, including CEO Neil Harris Blumenthal’s sale of 63,040 shares and Director Bradley E. Singer’s sale of 4,833 shares. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 203,833 shares worth about $5.5 million.
• Warby Parker’s latest earnings were mixed: revenue rose 8.4% year over year to $242.45 million, but EPS came in at $0.03, below the $0.11 analyst estimate. The stock was trading up 1.9% at $25.56, near its 52-week high of $31.00.

Shares of Warby Parker Inc. (NYSE:WRBY - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $29.50.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WRBY. Citigroup reiterated a "market outperform" rating on shares of Warby Parker in a report on Friday. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price objective on shares of Warby Parker from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Warby Parker from a "sell (d)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. BTIG Research upped their price objective on shares of Warby Parker from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Warby Parker from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th.

Insider Transactions at Warby Parker

In other Warby Parker news, CEO Neil Harris Blumenthal sold 63,040 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.03, for a total transaction of $1,893,091.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 50,165 shares in the company, valued at $1,506,454.95. This represents a 55.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Bradley E. Singer sold 4,833 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.01, for a total transaction of $140,205.33. Following the sale, the director owned 100,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,901,000. This trade represents a 4.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 203,833 shares of company stock valued at $5,509,808 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 16.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Warby Parker

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WRBY. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Warby Parker by 3.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,665,529 shares of the company's stock valued at $294,155,000 after buying an additional 327,830 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Warby Parker by 32.5% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 9,679,067 shares of the company's stock valued at $210,907,000 after buying an additional 2,375,726 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Warby Parker by 31.3% in the first quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 3,028,307 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,806,000 after buying an additional 722,627 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Warby Parker by 17.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,594,171 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,527,000 after buying an additional 381,071 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Warby Parker by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,408,610 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,484,000 after buying an additional 202,029 shares during the period. 93.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Warby Parker Trading Up 1.9%

NYSE WRBY opened at $25.56 on Wednesday. Warby Parker has a 1-year low of $14.96 and a 1-year high of $31.00. The company has a market capitalization of $2.74 billion, a PE ratio of 1,278.64 and a beta of 1.95. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $23.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.66.

Warby Parker (NYSE:WRBY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.11 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $242.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.44 million. Warby Parker had a return on equity of 2.30% and a net margin of 0.15%.The company's revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Warby Parker will post 0.24 EPS for the current year.

Warby Parker Company Profile

Warby Parker, Inc NYSE: WRBY is a U.S.-based eyewear company that designs, manufactures and sells prescription glasses, sunglasses and contact lenses through a direct-to-consumer model. Since its founding, the company has combined online and brick-and-mortar channels to streamline the customer experience, offering features such as virtual try-on technology and a home try-on program that allows consumers to sample frames before purchase.

Established in 2010 by Wharton graduates Neil Blumenthal, Dave Gilboa, Andrew Hunt and Jeffrey Raider, Warby Parker set out to disrupt the traditional optical market by controlling the entire supply chain—from frame design and lens production to warehousing and distribution.

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