The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Shares of The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) have earned an average rating of “Reduce” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have issued a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $3.00.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on HNST shares. Lake Street Capital downgraded shares of Honest from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $3.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Honest in a research report on Friday, January 16th. B. Riley Financial restated a “buy” rating on shares of Honest in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Telsey Advisory Group reduced their target price on Honest from $6.00 to $3.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Honest from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th.

Honest Price Performance

HNST opened at $2.13 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $2.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $3.23. Honest has a 1 year low of $2.07 and a 1 year high of $6.46. The stock has a market cap of $238.11 million, a P/E ratio of 35.50 and a beta of 2.30.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Carla Vernon sold 97,505 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.60, for a total transaction of $253,513.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,901,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,543,868.80. The trade was a 3.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Stephen Winchell sold 10,595 shares of Honest stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.60, for a total value of $27,547.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 399,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,039,121.20. The trade was a 2.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 8.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Portolan Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Honest by 11.4% during the 3rd quarter. Portolan Capital Management LLC now owns 6,928,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,495,000 after purchasing an additional 710,651 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Honest by 70.3% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,520,331 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,922,000 after buying an additional 627,537 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG boosted its position in Honest by 77.3% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,014,939 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,619,000 after acquiring an additional 442,542 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Honest by 187.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 542,269 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,760,000 after acquiring an additional 353,858 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Honest by 39.9% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,231,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,531,000 after acquiring an additional 350,860 shares in the last quarter. 45.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Honest Company Profile

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.