The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,030,000 shares, an increase of 129.5% from the June 30th total of 1,320,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,120,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.7 days. Currently, 4.6% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on HNST. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $4.00 price objective on shares of Honest in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Lake Street Capital assumed coverage on Honest in a report on Thursday, April 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $6.00 target price for the company. Finally, Loop Capital upgraded Honest from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $3.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Honest currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $4.55.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Thomas Sternweis sold 10,047 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.77, for a total transaction of $27,830.19. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 237,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $657,074.47. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Honest news, CEO Carla Vernon sold 43,317 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.77, for a total value of $119,988.09. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,881,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,980,563.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Thomas Sternweis sold 10,047 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.77, for a total value of $27,830.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 237,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $657,074.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 137,160 shares of company stock valued at $379,933. 8.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Honest

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HNST. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Honest during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,777,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its position in Honest by 973.4% during the 1st quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 430,090 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,742,000 after buying an additional 390,022 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Honest by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,851,501 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,549,000 after buying an additional 268,600 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Honest during the 2nd quarter valued at about $695,000. Finally, Valmark Advisers Inc. acquired a new position in Honest during the 4th quarter valued at about $431,000. 45.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Honest Price Performance

Shares of HNST stock traded down $0.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $3.88. The stock had a trading volume of 1,936,929 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,064,323. Honest has a 12-month low of $1.06 and a 12-month high of $4.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $382.72 million, a P/E ratio of -16.87 and a beta of 1.85. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $2.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.20.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $86.22 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $83.79 million. Honest had a negative return on equity of 17.44% and a negative net margin of 6.27%. Analysts expect that Honest will post -0.12 EPS for the current year.

Honest Company Profile

The Honest Company, Inc manufactures and sells diapers and wipes, skin and personal care, and household and wellness products. The company also offers baby clothing and nursery bedding products. It sells its products through digital and retail sales channels, such as its website and third-party ecommerce sites, as well as brick and mortar retailers.