National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) Given New $19.00 Price Target at BMO Capital Markets

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) had its target price raised by equities research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $13.00 to $19.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “market perform” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets’ target price points to a potential downside of 0.89% from the stock’s current price.

EYE has been the subject of several other research reports. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of National Vision from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. UBS Group raised their price target on National Vision from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Bank of America raised National Vision from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Citigroup raised shares of National Vision from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $13.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on National Vision from $14.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.75.

National Vision Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of EYE traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $19.17. The company had a trading volume of 132,854 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,783,752. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market cap of $1.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -95.95, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.02. National Vision has a 52 week low of $9.56 and a 52 week high of $19.41. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $13.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.04.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.02. National Vision had a negative net margin of 0.81% and a positive return on equity of 3.52%. The company had revenue of $510.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $510.30 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.32 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that National Vision will post 0.31 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other National Vision news, SVP Ravi Acharya sold 12,000 shares of National Vision stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.75, for a total transaction of $225,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $219,375. This trade represents a 50.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EYE. Woodline Partners LP raised its position in National Vision by 172.7% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 415,730 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,313,000 after buying an additional 263,308 shares during the last quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in National Vision in the 1st quarter worth approximately $142,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in National Vision by 4.4% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 46,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $591,000 after purchasing an additional 1,948 shares during the period. Kettle Hill Capital Management LLC bought a new position in National Vision during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,535,000. Finally, Engine Capital Management LP increased its stake in National Vision by 53.3% in the first quarter. Engine Capital Management LP now owns 3,875,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,531,000 after purchasing an additional 1,347,648 shares during the period.

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.