Short Interest in National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) Expands By 8.2%

National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,430,000 shares, a growth of 8.2% from the September 30th total of 5,940,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,900,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days. Currently, 8.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on EYE shares. Barclays decreased their target price on National Vision from $16.00 to $11.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of National Vision from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of National Vision from $20.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $15.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On National Vision

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in National Vision by 4.2% in the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 4,511,738 shares of the company’s stock valued at $99,980,000 after purchasing an additional 182,504 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in shares of National Vision by 153.4% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 127,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,625,000 after buying an additional 77,096 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of National Vision by 115.7% during the 2nd quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 2,479,245 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,453,000 after acquiring an additional 1,330,023 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in shares of National Vision by 166.6% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 211,305 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,683,000 after acquiring an additional 132,039 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC bought a new position in National Vision in the first quarter valued at approximately $4,595,000.

National Vision Stock Performance

EYE traded up $0.15 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $10.18. The stock had a trading volume of 1,418,209 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,436,016. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market cap of $799.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $10.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.94. National Vision has a one year low of $9.56 and a one year high of $24.11.

National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $451.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $451.35 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.11 earnings per share. National Vision’s revenue was down 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that National Vision will post 0.23 EPS for the current year.

About National Vision

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.