National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) Short Interest Update

National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,120,000 shares, an increase of 6.7% from the August 31st total of 4,800,000 shares. Currently, 6.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 2,180,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days.

National Vision Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of EYE stock traded down $0.22 on Tuesday, hitting $10.69. 1,264,518 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,477,653. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $11.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $839.82 million, a PE ratio of -11.86, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.41. National Vision has a twelve month low of $9.60 and a twelve month high of $24.11.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.06. National Vision had a negative net margin of 4.00% and a positive return on equity of 3.53%. The company had revenue of $451.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $451.35 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.11 earnings per share. National Vision’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that National Vision will post 0.33 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in National Vision by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,908,511 shares of the company’s stock valued at $197,413,000 after buying an additional 25,982 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in National Vision by 4.2% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 4,511,738 shares of the company’s stock worth $99,980,000 after purchasing an additional 182,504 shares during the period. Hawk Ridge Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in National Vision during the fourth quarter worth about $69,274,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in National Vision by 28.3% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,975,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,952,000 after purchasing an additional 656,656 shares during the period. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. increased its stake in National Vision by 115.7% during the second quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 2,479,245 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,453,000 after purchasing an additional 1,330,023 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of National Vision from $20.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of National Vision from $16.00 to $11.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of National Vision from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, National Vision currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.25.

National Vision Company Profile

National Vision Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an optical retailer in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Owned & Host and Legacy. It offers eyeglasses and contact lenses, and optical accessory products; provides eye exams through its America's Best, Eyeglass World, Vista Optical, Fred Meyer, and Vista Optical military, as well as Vision Center branded stores; and offers health maintenance organization and optometric services.