Emerald Advisers LLC Acquires 186,014 Shares of National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE)

Emerald Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of National Vision Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EYE) by 23.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 991,100 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 186,014 shares during the period. Emerald Advisers LLC’s holdings in National Vision were worth $10,327,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in EYE. Boston Partners bought a new stake in shares of National Vision in the fourth quarter worth $12,594,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of National Vision during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,858,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of National Vision by 17.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,412,292 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,408,000 after purchasing an additional 208,684 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in National Vision by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,411,838 shares of the company’s stock valued at $108,491,000 after buying an additional 167,735 shares during the period. Finally, Centiva Capital LP purchased a new stake in National Vision during the third quarter valued at approximately $613,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on National Vision from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of National Vision from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of National Vision from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of National Vision from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, National Vision currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $14.00.

National Vision Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EYE opened at $13.02 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $11.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.17. National Vision Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $9.56 and a 1 year high of $22.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The company has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -65.10, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.51.

About National Vision

National Vision Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an optical retailer in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Owned & Host and Legacy. It offers eyeglasses and contact lenses, and optical accessory products; provides eye exams through its America’s Best, Eyeglass World, Vista Optical, Fred Meyer, and Vista Optical military, as well as Vision Center branded stores; and offers health maintenance organization and optometric services.