Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Monday.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. DA Davidson raised their price target on Herbalife from $9.50 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. B. Riley lifted their price objective on Herbalife from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.33.

Herbalife Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HLF opened at $6.85 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $684.78 million, a PE ratio of 5.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 1.19. Herbalife has a one year low of $6.59 and a one year high of $15.71. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $7.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $9.42.

Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. Herbalife had a negative return on equity of 18.69% and a net margin of 1.63%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.74 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Herbalife will post 1.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Herbalife

In other Herbalife news, Director Juan Miguel Mendoza purchased 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $7.11 per share, with a total value of $71,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 120,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $853,200. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Herbalife

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Herbalife by 164.8% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,288,198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,658,000 after acquiring an additional 801,644 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Herbalife during the first quarter valued at approximately $4,013,000. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of Herbalife during the first quarter valued at approximately $274,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Herbalife by 13.1% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 57,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $575,000 after purchasing an additional 6,607 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Herbalife by 24.5% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 100,790 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,013,000 after acquiring an additional 19,862 shares during the last quarter.

About Herbalife

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.