e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF) Short Interest Up 29.5% in February

e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,470,000 shares, a growth of 29.5% from the January 31st total of 5,770,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,660,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days.

Insider Transactions at e.l.f. Beauty

In related news, CEO Tarang Amin sold 890 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.60, for a total value of $122,464.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 99,699 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,718,582.40. This represents a 0.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Scott Milsten sold 530 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.60, for a total value of $72,928.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 68,853 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,474,172.80. The trade was a 0.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On e.l.f. Beauty

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Baillie Gifford & Co. raised its position in shares of e.l.f. Beauty by 51.0% during the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 8,009,434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,005,584,000 after buying an additional 2,703,742 shares during the period. Champlain Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in e.l.f. Beauty during the third quarter worth $121,558,000. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in e.l.f. Beauty in the third quarter valued at $76,321,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of e.l.f. Beauty by 40.9% in the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 2,305,349 shares of the company’s stock valued at $289,437,000 after purchasing an additional 669,321 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aspex Management HK Ltd purchased a new position in shares of e.l.f. Beauty during the 4th quarter worth $73,576,000. 92.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

e.l.f. Beauty Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE ELF traded up $0.07 on Tuesday, reaching $63.88. 2,985,687 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,147,265. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $101.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $115.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 1.47. e.l.f. Beauty has a fifty-two week low of $61.90 and a fifty-two week high of $219.77.

e.l.f. Beauty (NYSE:ELF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.35). e.l.f. Beauty had a return on equity of 16.88% and a net margin of 7.55%. Analysts forecast that e.l.f. Beauty will post 2.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ELF. B. Riley reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $90.00 price target (down previously from $150.00) on shares of e.l.f. Beauty in a research note on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of e.l.f. Beauty from $154.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of e.l.f. Beauty from $115.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of e.l.f. Beauty in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $133.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on e.l.f. Beauty from $130.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, e.l.f. Beauty currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $132.94.

e.l.f. Beauty Company Profile

e.l.f. Beauty, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of inclusive, accessible, clean, vegan and cruelty free cosmetics and skin care products. The company focuses on the e-commerce, national retailers and international business channels. Its brands include elf, elf skin, WELL People and KEYS soulcare.