The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) Short Interest Down 11.1% in October

The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,000,000 shares, a drop of 11.1% from the October 15th total of 2,250,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,620,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.2 days. Currently, 3.0% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Northland Capmk raised Honest to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on Honest from $4.00 to $6.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Alliance Global Partners lifted their target price on Honest from $5.75 to $8.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Northland Securities lifted their target price on Honest from $6.50 to $7.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, B. Riley boosted their price target on Honest from $6.50 to $7.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Honest presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $5.93.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Honest news, major shareholder Shared Abacus Lp Thc sold 2,300,000 shares of Honest stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.50, for a total transaction of $8,050,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 9,869,803 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,544,310.50. The trade was a 18.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO David Loretta sold 75,656 shares of Honest stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.28, for a total value of $323,807.68. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 987,757 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,227,599.96. This trade represents a 7.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,461,187 shares of company stock valued at $8,739,880. 8.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Honest

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HNST. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Honest in the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,777,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in Honest by 117.3% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,568,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,579,000 after purchasing an additional 846,300 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Honest by 1,504.9% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 851,436 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,040,000 after buying an additional 798,384 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Honest by 706.1% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 716,332 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,088,000 after buying an additional 627,464 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Honest by 68.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 943,618 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,755,000 after buying an additional 382,418 shares during the last quarter. 45.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Honest Trading Up 6.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ HNST traded up $0.41 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $6.91. The stock had a trading volume of 6,954,514 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,230,021. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $3.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3.52. Honest has a 52 week low of $1.40 and a 52 week high of $7.14.

About Honest

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.