Virtu Financial LLC Acquires New Stake in The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST)

Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 61,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $219,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HNST. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in Honest by 123.5% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 51,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $149,000 after purchasing an additional 28,290 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Honest during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $695,000. Panagora Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Honest during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $43,000. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Honest by 2,486.2% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 104,481 shares of the company’s stock valued at $305,000 after buying an additional 100,441 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Honest by 706.1% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 716,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,088,000 after buying an additional 627,464 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 45.54% of the company’s stock.

Honest Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HNST opened at $6.52 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $5.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $4.30. The company has a market capitalization of $658.27 million, a PE ratio of -163.00 and a beta of 2.42. The Honest Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $2.40 and a 12-month high of $8.97.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HNST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on Honest from $4.00 to $6.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Northland Securities increased their price target on shares of Honest from $7.50 to $9.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. B. Riley boosted their price objective on shares of Honest from $6.50 to $7.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Alliance Global Partners upped their target price on shares of Honest from $5.75 to $8.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Loop Capital downgraded shares of Honest from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $7.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $6.79.

Insider Activity at Honest

In related news, General Counsel Brendan Sheehey sold 92,138 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.13, for a total value of $749,081.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now owns 516,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,201,714.08. The trade was a 15.13 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jessica Warren sold 465,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.55, for a total transaction of $3,510,750.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,170,058 shares in the company, valued at $8,833,937.90. This represents a 28.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 799,818 shares of company stock valued at $5,975,421. 8.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Honest Company Profile

The Honest Company, Inc manufactures and sells diapers and wipes, skin and personal care, and household and wellness products. The company also offers baby clothing and nursery bedding products. It sells its products through digital and retail sales channels, such as its website and third-party ecommerce sites, as well as brick and mortar retailers.