Warby Parker (NYSE:WRBY) Trading Down 6.6% – Here’s Why

Warby Parker Inc. (NYSE:WRBY)’s share price fell 6.6% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $25.10 and last traded at $26.7620. 5,404,937 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 75% from the average session volume of 3,083,103 shares. The stock had previously closed at $28.65.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on WRBY. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Warby Parker from $18.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Warby Parker from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Warby Parker from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price objective on shares of Warby Parker from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their price objective on shares of Warby Parker from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $29.00.

Warby Parker Stock Down 12.3%

The firm’s 50-day moving average is $23.70 and its 200-day moving average is $23.43. The company has a market cap of $2.69 billion, a PE ratio of 1,256.68 and a beta of 1.95.

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

Insider Transactions at Warby Parker

In other Warby Parker news, Director Bradley E. Singer sold 4,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.01, for a total value of $140,205.33. Following the sale, the director owned 100,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,901,000. This represents a 4.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Neil Harris Blumenthal sold 22,442 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.09, for a total transaction of $563,069.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 50,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,258,639.85. This trade represents a 30.91% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 140,793 shares of company stock worth $3,616,716. Corporate insiders own 16.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Warby Parker

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Warby Parker by 3.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,665,529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $294,155,000 after buying an additional 327,830 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Warby Parker by 32.5% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 9,679,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $210,907,000 after purchasing an additional 2,375,726 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its position in Warby Parker by 31.3% during the first quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 3,028,307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,806,000 after purchasing an additional 722,627 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Warby Parker by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,594,171 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,527,000 after purchasing an additional 381,071 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its position in Warby Parker by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,408,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,484,000 after purchasing an additional 202,029 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.24% of the company’s stock.

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.