National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) Short Interest Down 21.9% in May

National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,850,000 shares, a decrease of 21.9% from the April 30th total of 7,490,000 shares. Currently, 7.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 2,300,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.5 days.

National Vision Stock Performance

NASDAQ EYE traded up $0.30 during trading on Monday, reaching $20.11. 322,261 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,829,699. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $14.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.58. National Vision has a fifty-two week low of $9.56 and a fifty-two week high of $20.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -100.55, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.02.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $510.32 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $510.30 million. National Vision had a negative net margin of 0.81% and a positive return on equity of 3.52%. The business’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.32 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that National Vision will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EYE has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America raised shares of National Vision from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays raised their target price on National Vision from $14.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group upped their price target on National Vision from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on National Vision from $13.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on National Vision from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $17.75.

Insider Activity at National Vision

In other news, SVP Ravi Acharya sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.75, for a total transaction of $225,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $219,375. This represents a 50.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On National Vision

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EYE. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of National Vision during the first quarter valued at about $35,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of National Vision by 69.3% during the first quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,230 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of National Vision by 87.5% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 3,291 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of National Vision by 49.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,318 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 2,412 shares during the period. Finally, Teza Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in National Vision in the first quarter valued at approximately $142,000.

National Vision Company Profile

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.