Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) Shares Down 4.6% – Here’s What Happened

The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST)’s stock price dropped 4.6% on Wednesday. The stock traded as low as $4.82 and last traded at $4.8370. 547,681 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 1,859,806 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.07.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Honest from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Honest from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price target on shares of Honest from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Honest from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Alliance Global Partners reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Honest in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Honest presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $4.84.

Honest Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $4.22. The stock has a market cap of $534.99 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -44.18 and a beta of 2.32.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $80.19 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $77.83 million. Honest had a positive return on equity of 4.31% and a negative net margin of 3.56%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Honest Company, Inc. will post 0.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Andrea Turner sold 34,396 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.30, for a total transaction of $182,298.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 282,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,496,211.20. The trade was a 10.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Jonathan Mayle sold 79,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.22, for a total transaction of $412,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 370,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,932,209.10. The trade was a 17.59% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 294,149 shares of company stock valued at $1,503,306. 9.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Honest

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HNST. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in Honest by 45.8% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 7,038 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 2,211 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in Honest in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Amundi acquired a new position in Honest in the second quarter valued at about $44,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new stake in shares of Honest in the second quarter worth about $56,000. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of Honest in the second quarter worth about $75,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.54% of the company’s stock.

About Honest

The Honest Company, Inc is a consumer products company that develops and sells personal care, beauty, baby, and household products. Its offerings include diapers, wipes, baby care items, skin care, hair care, personal care products, and household cleaning solutions, with an emphasis on ingredient transparency and products positioned as safer and more sustainable alternatives.

Founded in 2011 by actress and entrepreneur Jessica Alba, Honest sells its products through its website and retail partners.