National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) Short Interest Update

National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,720,000 shares, a growth of 13.4% from the December 31st total of 3,280,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,350,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days. Currently, 4.8% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on National Vision from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on National Vision from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.40.

Institutional Trading of National Vision

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EYE. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in National Vision by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 28,676 shares of the company’s stock worth $298,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its stake in National Vision by 6.3% in the third quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 21,404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $234,000 after acquiring an additional 1,273 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its position in National Vision by 64.6% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,291 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,292 shares in the last quarter. Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in National Vision by 15.3% during the third quarter. Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC now owns 15,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $164,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in National Vision by 13.4% during the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 20,191 shares of the company’s stock valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 2,384 shares in the last quarter.

National Vision Stock Down 1.9 %

EYE stock traded down $0.21 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $11.19. The company had a trading volume of 178,601 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,342,231. The company has a 50 day moving average of $11.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $11.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. National Vision has a 1 year low of $9.56 and a 1 year high of $24.11. The company has a market capitalization of $881.13 million, a P/E ratio of -55.38, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.44.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $451.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $451.13 million. National Vision had a positive return on equity of 3.52% and a negative net margin of 0.81%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.09 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that National Vision will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About National Vision

National Vision Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an optical retailer in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Owned & Host and Legacy. It offers eyeglasses and contact lenses, and optical accessory products; provides eye exams through its America’s Best, Eyeglass World, Vista Optical, Fred Meyer, and Vista Optical military, as well as Vision Center branded stores; and offers health maintenance organization and optometric services.