Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) Rating Lowered to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

HNST has been the subject of several other research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Honest in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $3.00 price target on shares of Honest in a research note on Thursday. Lake Street Capital cut Honest from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $3.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, November 6th. B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Honest in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Honest in a research report on Friday, January 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $3.00.

Honest Stock Performance

HNST opened at $2.79 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $311.89 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.93 and a beta of 2.30. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $2.47 and its 200 day moving average is $3.09. Honest has a fifty-two week low of $2.07 and a fifty-two week high of $5.62.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported ($0.21) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by ($0.23). The business had revenue of $88.04 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $88.57 million. Honest had a negative net margin of 4.22% and a positive return on equity of 4.47%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Honest will post -0.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Honest declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Friday, February 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $25.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 9.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Honest

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HNST. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in Honest by 1,392.2% during the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 7,073 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 6,599 shares during the last quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Honest during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Honest during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Equity Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Honest during the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in Honest in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. 45.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Honest

Here are the key news stories impacting Honest this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board authorized a $25.0 million share buyback (up to ~9.9% of shares), which investors often see as management signaling the stock is undervalued and that there will be buy-side support for the float. RTT News
• Positive Sentiment: Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating with a $3.00 price target, offering a modest analyst-backed upside view versus current levels. Analyst Note
• Neutral Sentiment: Company released Q4 and full?year 2025 results and held an earnings call; the transcript provides management commentary that investors will parse for underlying trends and margin/cost dynamics. Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple outlets published earnings snapshots and call highlights summarizing operational context — useful for gauging whether the beat/miss was driven by one-time items or recurring trends. Q4 Snapshot
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 EPS missed by $0.23 (reported ($0.21) vs. $0.02 expected) and revenue was slightly below consensus at $88.04M vs. $88.57M; an EPS miss tends to pressure sentiment and valuation multiples. Press Release / Slides
• Negative Sentiment: Management updated FY2026 guidance with revenue of $306.0M–$312.0M, well below the consensus (~$340.2M), which is a significant headwind for forward estimates and likely drove some sell-side caution. Full Results / Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the buyback, the company’s near-term profitability is under pressure (negative margins in recent reporting and lowered top-line outlook), meaning sustained upside will depend on execution against guidance and margin recovery. Market Coverage

About Honest

The Honest Company, Inc (NASDAQ: HNST) is an American consumer goods firm specializing in eco-friendly and responsibly formulated products for babies, personal care, beauty and home cleaning. The company emphasizes transparency in ingredient sourcing and product safety, positioning itself in the premium segment of mass-market retail and direct-to-consumer channels.

Honest was founded in 2011 by actress Jessica Alba and environmental health advocate Christopher Gavigan with a mission to offer parents household and baby care items free from harsh chemicals and synthetic fragrances.