Helen of Troy (NASDAQ:HELE) Shares Up 7% on Analyst Upgrade

Helen of Troy Limited (NASDAQ:HELE)’s share price shot up 7% during mid-day trading on Monday after DA Davidson raised their price target on the stock from $71.00 to $78.00. DA Davidson currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Helen of Troy traded as high as $75.00 and last traded at $74.82. 39,056 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 91% from the average session volume of 443,681 shares. The stock had previously closed at $69.92.

Separately, Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $84.00 price target on shares of Helen of Troy in a research note on Monday, October 7th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lifted its holdings in shares of Helen of Troy by 30.3% in the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 783 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Villanova Investment Management Co LLC purchased a new stake in Helen of Troy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,235,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Helen of Troy by 96.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 242,395 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,992,000 after purchasing an additional 118,814 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Helen of Troy by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 894,681 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,336,000 after purchasing an additional 31,582 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Helen of Troy by 17.0% in the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 226,879 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,032,000 after purchasing an additional 33,010 shares during the period.

Helen of Troy Stock Down 1.3 %

The company has a market cap of $1.62 billion, a PE ratio of 11.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $64.61 and a 200-day moving average of $72.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Helen of Troy (NASDAQ:HELE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 9th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $474.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $458.85 million. Helen of Troy had a return on equity of 9.31% and a net margin of 7.35%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.45 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Helen of Troy Limited will post 6.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Helen of Troy declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, September 5th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 39.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Helen of Troy Company Profile

Helen of Troy Limited provides various consumer products in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company operates in two segments: Home & Outdoor and Beauty & Wellness. The Home & Outdoor segment offers food storage containers, kitchen utensils for cooking and preparing salads, fruits, vegetables and meats, graters, slicers and choppers, baking essentials, kitchen organization, bath, cleaning, infant and toddler products, and coffee preparation tools and electronics; and insulated beverageware, including bottles, travel tumblers, drinkware, mugs, food and lunch containers, insulated totes, soft coolers, outdoor kitchenware, and accessories.