Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $5.22, but opened at $5.50. Herbalife shares last traded at $5.78, with a volume of 571,821 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HLF. B. Riley decreased their target price on shares of Herbalife from $17.00 to $12.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Herbalife from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup dropped their target price on Herbalife from $16.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. DA Davidson decreased their price target on Herbalife from $13.00 to $7.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, StockNews.com raised Herbalife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $9.90.

Herbalife Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $563.11 million, a P/E ratio of 6.57, a PEG ratio of 0.18 and a beta of 1.15. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $6.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $7.35.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Herbalife

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of HLF. Perpetual Ltd boosted its position in shares of Herbalife by 107.1% in the 4th quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 966,063 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,463,000 after purchasing an additional 499,572 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Herbalife by 347.0% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 161,426 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,160,000 after buying an additional 125,311 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Herbalife by 72.1% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 168,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,209,000 after acquiring an additional 70,498 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Herbalife by 83.5% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 18,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 8,591 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Herbalife by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,479,957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,831,000 after acquiring an additional 160,792 shares in the last quarter.

Herbalife Company Profile

Herbalife Ltd. provides health and wellness products in North America, Mexico, South and Central America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, China, and the Asia Pacific. It offers products in the areas of weight management; targeted nutrition; energy, sports, and fitness; outer nutrition; and literature and promotional items.