Helen of Troy (NASDAQ:HELE) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

Helen of Troy (NASDAQ:HELE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Wednesday.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the company. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Helen of Troy from $71.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Helen of Troy from $79.00 to $69.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th.

Helen of Troy Price Performance

NASDAQ HELE traded down $0.11 on Wednesday, hitting $56.53. The company had a trading volume of 355,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 387,713. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company has a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, a PE ratio of 11.40, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.91. Helen of Troy has a 12-month low of $48.05 and a 12-month high of $127.83. The company's fifty day moving average price is $62.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.76.

Helen of Troy (NASDAQ:HELE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The company reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.07. Helen of Troy had a net margin of 6.05% and a return on equity of 9.13%. The firm had revenue of $530.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $532.91 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.79 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Helen of Troy will post 6.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Helen of Troy

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HELE. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Helen of Troy by 158.3% during the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,198 shares of the company's stock worth $321,000 after acquiring an additional 3,186 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC raised its stake in Helen of Troy by 75.5% during the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,649 shares of the company's stock worth $411,000 after purchasing an additional 2,861 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Helen of Troy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $315,000. Net Worth Advisory Group purchased a new stake in shares of Helen of Troy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $413,000. Finally, Evernest Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Helen of Troy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $775,000.

About Helen of Troy

Helen of Troy Limited provides various consumer products in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company operates in two segments: Home & Outdoor and Beauty & Wellness. The Home & Outdoor segment offers food storage containers, kitchen utensils for cooking and preparing salads, fruits, vegetables and meats, graters, slicers and choppers, baking essentials, kitchen organization, bath, cleaning, infant and toddler products, and coffee preparation tools and electronics; and insulated beverageware, including bottles, travel tumblers, drinkware, mugs, food and lunch containers, insulated totes, soft coolers, outdoor kitchenware, and accessories.