Insider Selling: Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) CEO Sells 129,335 Shares of Stock

The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) CEO Carla Vernon sold 129,335 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.85, for a total transaction of $368,604.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,065,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,586,806.10. This represents a 3.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Honest Trading Down 4.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:HNST traded down $0.12 during trading on Monday, reaching $2.81. The company had a trading volume of 2,349,221 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,034,835. The company has a fifty day moving average of $2.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $3.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $316.05 million, a P/E ratio of -20.07 and a beta of 2.27. The Honest Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $2.07 and a 12 month high of $5.55.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported ($0.21) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by ($0.23). Honest had a positive return on equity of 4.57% and a negative net margin of 4.22%.The company had revenue of $88.04 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $88.57 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Honest Company, Inc. will post -0.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Honest announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Friday, February 20th that permits the company to buyback $25.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 9.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Honest by 6.9% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 49,916 shares of the company’s stock worth $235,000 after buying an additional 3,210 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Honest by 18.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 21,366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 3,365 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in Honest by 33.9% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 14,577 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 3,693 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Honest by 17.1% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 27,342 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,000 after acquiring an additional 3,985 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of Honest by 14.9% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 33,734 shares of the company’s stock valued at $172,000 after acquiring an additional 4,378 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 45.54% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HNST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Honest from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $3.00 price objective on shares of Honest in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Honest in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Honest in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $3.00 price target on shares of Honest in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $3.00.

About Honest

The Honest Company, Inc (NASDAQ: HNST) is an American consumer goods firm specializing in eco-friendly and responsibly formulated products for babies, personal care, beauty and home cleaning. The company emphasizes transparency in ingredient sourcing and product safety, positioning itself in the premium segment of mass-market retail and direct-to-consumer channels.

Honest was founded in 2011 by actress Jessica Alba and environmental health advocate Christopher Gavigan with a mission to offer parents household and baby care items free from harsh chemicals and synthetic fragrances.