Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) Stock Rating Cut to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Thursday,Zacks reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Herbalife in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and set a $17.00 target price (down from $21.00) on shares of Herbalife in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Herbalife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, October 24th. UBS Group set a $21.00 target price on Herbalife in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Finally, Texas Capital raised Herbalife to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $17.67.

Herbalife Price Performance

Shares of HLF stock opened at $13.04 on Thursday. Herbalife has a fifty-two week low of $7.56 and a fifty-two week high of $20.40. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $12.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.01. The firm has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.41, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 0.78.

Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. Herbalife had a negative return on equity of 43.90% and a net margin of 3.16%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.59 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Herbalife will post 2.68 EPS for the current year.

Herbalife announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, September 8th that permits the company to buy back $250 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 19.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Share buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Herbalife

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its stake in shares of Herbalife by 39.4% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 428,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,633,000 after buying an additional 121,026 shares in the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in shares of Herbalife during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,372,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Herbalife during the 2nd quarter valued at about $5,842,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP boosted its position in shares of Herbalife by 154.1% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 202,483 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,663,000 after acquiring an additional 122,788 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LP boosted its position in shares of Herbalife by 697.8% during the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 179,125 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,355,000 after acquiring an additional 156,672 shares in the last quarter.

About Herbalife

Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE: HLF) is a global nutrition and wellness company that develops and distributes products through a network of independent members and distributors. Its offerings include meal-replacement shakes, protein and other dietary supplements, vitamins, sports nutrition products, and personal-care items.

Founded in 1980 by Mark Hughes, Herbalife sells its products through direct-selling channels rather than primarily through traditional retail stores. Independent distributors market the products, provide product guidance, and may operate nutrition clubs or similar community-based businesses.

The company serves customers across numerous markets in North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and other regions.