Analysts Set Herbalife Ltd (NYSE:HLF) PT at $17.80

Herbalife Ltd (NYSE:HLF) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the seven analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $17.00.

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Mizuho set a $17.00 price objective on Herbalife in a report on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Herbalife from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Herbalife from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Herbalife from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Herbalife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday.

Herbalife Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of HLF stock opened at $12.33 on Monday. Herbalife has a 12-month low of $7.56 and a 12-month high of $20.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 0.87. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $12.26 and its 200 day moving average is $14.50.

Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. Herbalife had a net margin of 3.16% and a negative return on equity of 43.90%. Herbalife’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Herbalife will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Frank Lamberti sold 134,982 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.50, for a total value of $1,822,257.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 36,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $494,424. This trade represents a 78.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Troy Hicks sold 10,000 shares of Herbalife stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.32, for a total value of $123,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 9,706 shares in the company, valued at approximately $119,577.92. The trade was a 50.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 183,359 shares of company stock valued at $2,441,672. 5.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Herbalife

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HLF. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Herbalife in the fourth quarter valued at $1,795,000. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Herbalife by 291.2% during the 1st quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 141,277 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,080,000 after purchasing an additional 105,160 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Herbalife during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,809,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in Herbalife by 11.5% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,596,795 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,225,000 after purchasing an additional 267,539 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Herbalife during the 1st quarter valued at about $9,491,000.

About Herbalife

Herbalife Nutrition Ltd. (NYSE: HLF) operates as a global multi-level marketing company specializing in weight-management, nutritional supplement, sports nutrition and personal care products. Its portfolio includes protein shakes, vitamins, energy and fitness supplements, hydration products and skin and hair care items, all formulated to support wellness, performance and healthy living. Products are manufactured in GMP-certified facilities to ensure consistent quality and safety standards.

Founded in 1980 by Mark R.