Warby Parker Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:WRBY)

Warby Parker Inc. (NYSE:WRBY) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Traders acquired 8,903 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 132% compared to the typical daily volume of 3,839 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WRBY has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Warby Parker from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday. BTIG Research increased their price target on shares of Warby Parker from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price target on shares of Warby Parker from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Warby Parker from $18.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Warby Parker from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Bradley E. Singer sold 15,793 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.53, for a total transaction of $434,781.29. Following the sale, the director owned 16,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $441,195.78. This represents a 49.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Neil Harris Blumenthal sold 22,442 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.09, for a total transaction of $563,069.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 50,165 shares in the company, valued at $1,258,639.85. This trade represents a 30.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 115,793 shares of company stock worth $2,901,550 in the last ninety days. 16.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Warby Parker

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. First Horizon Corp lifted its position in shares of Warby Parker by 96.7% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 1,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 595 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Warby Parker in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Warby Parker by 41.4% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,687 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 494 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Warby Parker by 110.7% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 965 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Warby Parker by 5,795.3% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,535 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 2,492 shares in the last quarter. 93.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Warby Parker Price Performance

WRBY traded up $0.79 during trading on Thursday, hitting $29.28. 693,536 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,048,969. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 1,444.72 and a beta of 1.95. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $23.61 and a 200 day moving average of $23.27. Warby Parker has a 12-month low of $14.96 and a 12-month high of $31.00.

Warby Parker (NYSE:WRBY) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.11 by ($0.08). Warby Parker had a return on equity of 2.30% and a net margin of 0.15%.The company had revenue of $242.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $239.44 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.03 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Warby Parker will post 0.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Warby Parker

Warby Parker, Inc (NYSE: WRBY) is a U.S.-based eyewear company that designs, manufactures and sells prescription glasses, sunglasses and contact lenses through a direct-to-consumer model. Since its founding, the company has combined online and brick-and-mortar channels to streamline the customer experience, offering features such as virtual try-on technology and a home try-on program that allows consumers to sample frames before purchase.

Established in 2010 by Wharton graduates Neil Blumenthal, Dave Gilboa, Andrew Hunt and Jeffrey Raider, Warby Parker set out to disrupt the traditional optical market by controlling the entire supply chain—from frame design and lens production to warehousing and distribution.