Short Interest in The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST) Grows By 37.2%

The Honest Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:HNST - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,540,000 shares, a growth of 37.2% from the December 15th total of 2,580,000 shares. Approximately 4.9% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 3,330,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.1 days.

Insider Activity

In other Honest news, General Counsel Brendan Sheehey sold 107,653 shares of Honest stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.01, for a total value of $754,647.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 517,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,630,205.61. The trade was a 17.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Stephen Winchell sold 7,123 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.10, for a total transaction of $50,573.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 382,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,716,552.30. This represents a 1.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 799,818 shares of company stock worth $5,975,421 over the last three months. 8.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HNST. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Honest by 216.0% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 545,323 shares of the company's stock worth $1,947,000 after purchasing an additional 372,749 shares in the last quarter. Walleye Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Honest in the third quarter worth about $260,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Honest by 122.5% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 219,697 shares of the company's stock worth $784,000 after buying an additional 120,937 shares during the period. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Honest during the 3rd quarter valued at about $843,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Honest during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $806,000. 45.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HNST has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Northland Securities boosted their price target on Honest from $7.50 to $9.50 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Alliance Global Partners boosted their target price on Honest from $5.75 to $8.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price target on shares of Honest from $6.00 to $7.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. B. Riley lifted their price target on shares of Honest from $6.50 to $7.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Loop Capital downgraded shares of Honest from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $7.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $6.93.

Honest Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HNST traded up $0.09 during trading on Thursday, hitting $6.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,357,976 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,335,771. The firm has a market cap of $646.14 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -160.00 and a beta of 2.45. The company has a 50-day moving average of $6.96 and a 200-day moving average of $4.86. Honest has a 12 month low of $2.40 and a 12 month high of $8.97.

About Honest

The Honest Company, Inc manufactures and sells diapers and wipes, skin and personal care, and household and wellness products. The company also offers baby clothing and nursery bedding products. It sells its products through digital and retail sales channels, such as its website and third-party ecommerce sites, as well as brick and mortar retailers.