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

National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,730,000 shares, an increase of 23.0% from the February 28th total of 5,470,000 shares. Approximately 8.7% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,500,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.5 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on EYE shares. Barclays increased their target price on shares of National Vision from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on National Vision from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on National Vision from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of National Vision from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $14.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On National Vision

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of National Vision in the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in National Vision in the third quarter valued at about $45,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of National Vision by 309.2% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,906 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 3,707 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of National Vision by 87.5% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 3,291 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Guggenheim Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of National Vision in the 4th quarter worth approximately $150,000.

National Vision Price Performance

Shares of EYE traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $12.88. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,305,386 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,578,542. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $11.33. National Vision has a 1-year low of $9.56 and a 1-year high of $21.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a P/E ratio of -64.40, a P/E/G ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

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.