Luxor Capital Group LP Takes Position in Vera Bradley, Inc. $VRA

Luxor Capital Group LP purchased a new stake in Vera Bradley, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRA) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 192,998 shares of the textile maker’s stock, valued at approximately $610,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in Vera Bradley by 7.0% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 221,716 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $701,000 after purchasing an additional 14,500 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in shares of Vera Bradley by 31.6% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,038,807 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $3,283,000 after buying an additional 249,161 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Vera Bradley by 19.3% during the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 340,083 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $823,000 after buying an additional 55,120 shares in the last quarter. Impala Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vera Bradley during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $976,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in Vera Bradley by 133.2% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 467,127 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,130,000 after acquiring an additional 266,785 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Andrew Meslow acquired 24,926 shares of Vera Bradley stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $3.73 per share, with a total value of $92,973.98. Following the purchase, the director owned 650,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,424,500. This trade represents a 3.99% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 14.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on VRA. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vera Bradley from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Vera Bradley in a report on Monday, June 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Vera Bradley Trading Up 0.3%

NASDAQ:VRA opened at $3.69 on Friday. Vera Bradley, Inc. has a 12 month low of $1.39 and a 12 month high of $4.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $3.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $3.34. The firm has a market cap of $104.94 million, a P/E ratio of -5.35 and a beta of 1.57.

Vera Bradley (NASDAQ:VRA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, June 11th. The textile maker reported ($0.09) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.33) by $0.24. The business had revenue of $55.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $49.12 million. Vera Bradley had a negative return on equity of 6.66% and a negative net margin of 7.02%. On average, research analysts forecast that Vera Bradley, Inc. will post -0.28 earnings per share for the current year.

About Vera Bradley

Vera Bradley, Inc (NASDAQ: VRA) is a lifestyle and accessories designer specializing in colorful, patterned handbags, luggage, travel accessories and coordinated home décor. Founded in 1982 by Barbara Bradley Baekgaard and Patricia R. Miller, the company first gained recognition for its quilted cotton bags sold at craft shows before expanding into an established fashion brand. Headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Vera Bradley has built a reputation for distinctive prints and functional design aimed primarily at women’s casual and travel needs.

The company’s product portfolio includes day bags, weekenders, backpacks, wallets, and organizational cases, as well as an expanding range of travel gear such as rolling luggage and travel pouches.