Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) Insider Sells $21,662.86 in Stock

The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) insider Dorria Ball sold 6,899 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.14, for a total transaction of $21,662.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 425,396 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,335,743.44. This represents a 1.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Honest Price Performance

Shares of HNST stock traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $3.41. The company had a trading volume of 1,777,147 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,839,630. The company’s fifty day moving average is $3.11 and its 200 day moving average is $2.78. The Honest Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2.07 and a fifty-two week high of $5.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $375.37 million, a PE ratio of -20.06 and a beta of 2.15.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.01. Honest had a negative net margin of 5.39% and a positive return on equity of 3.52%. The firm had revenue of $78.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $76.25 million. Equities analysts forecast that The Honest Company, Inc. will post 0.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Honest declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Friday, February 20th that permits the company to buyback $25.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 9.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HNST has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Honest in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $3.40 target price on Honest in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Alliance Global Partners reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Honest in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Honest from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Honest from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Honest has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $3.47.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Honest

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HNST. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in Honest by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 49,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $235,000 after purchasing an additional 3,210 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Honest by 16.4% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,936,846 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,103,000 after purchasing an additional 272,765 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in Honest by 18.1% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,064,179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,002,000 after purchasing an additional 163,380 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its position in Honest by 183.2% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 64,942 shares of the company’s stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 42,008 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in Honest by 18.1% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 134,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $686,000 after purchasing an additional 20,603 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.54% of the company’s stock.

Honest Company Profile

The Honest Company, Inc (NASDAQ: HNST) is an American consumer goods firm specializing in eco-friendly and responsibly formulated products for babies, personal care, beauty and home cleaning. The company emphasizes transparency in ingredient sourcing and product safety, positioning itself in the premium segment of mass-market retail and direct-to-consumer channels.

Honest was founded in 2011 by actress Jessica Alba and environmental health advocate Christopher Gavigan with a mission to offer parents household and baby care items free from harsh chemicals and synthetic fragrances.