Short Interest in Vera Bradley, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRA) Expands By 22.8%

Vera Bradley, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRA) was the target of a large increase in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 833,600 shares, an increase of 22.8% from the May 31st total of 679,100 shares. Approximately 3.9% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 326,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Vera Bradley Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of Vera Bradley stock opened at $6.26 on Monday. Vera Bradley has a twelve month low of $5.66 and a twelve month high of $8.35. The company’s 50 day moving average is $7.09 and its 200 day moving average is $7.18. The company has a market cap of $184.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.71 and a beta of 1.94.

Vera Bradley (NASDAQ:VRA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, June 12th. The textile maker reported ($0.21) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.11 by ($0.32). Vera Bradley had a net margin of 0.96% and a return on equity of 5.17%. The company had revenue of $80.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.76 million. Sell-side analysts expect that Vera Bradley will post 0.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vera Bradley

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Vera Bradley by 73.7% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 7,174 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 3,044 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in Vera Bradley in the 4th quarter worth about $56,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Vera Bradley by 258.7% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 9,017 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 6,503 shares during the period. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vera Bradley during the third quarter worth $94,000. Finally, Clear Street Markets LLC bought a new stake in Vera Bradley during the 4th quarter valued at about $94,000. 59.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Vera Bradley from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, June 13th.

About Vera Bradley

Vera Bradley, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells women's handbags, luggage and travel items, fashion and home accessories, and gifts. It operates through three segments: Vera Bradley Direct, Vera Bradley Indirect, and Pura Vida. The company offers bag products, such as totes, crossbodies, satchels, clutches, backpacks, baby bags, and lunch bags; accessories, including ID holders, lanyards, wallets, wristlets, eyewear, scarves, hair accessories, and various technology accessories; bracelets, rings, and necklaces under Pura Vida brand name; and travel products consist of rolling luggage, cosmetics, and travel and packing accessories, as well as travel bags comprising duffel and weekend bags.