The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAIN) Shares Acquired by Ethic Inc.

Ethic Inc. lifted its holdings in The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAIN) by 133.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 35,378 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,219 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in The Hain Celestial Group were worth $218,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of The Hain Celestial Group by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 49,113 shares of the company’s stock worth $302,000 after acquiring an additional 2,091 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of The Hain Celestial Group by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 54,389 shares of the company’s stock worth $334,000 after acquiring an additional 3,215 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of The Hain Celestial Group by 49.0% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 3,554 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of The Hain Celestial Group by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 56,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $346,000 after acquiring an additional 3,732 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in shares of The Hain Celestial Group by 43.5% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 19,266 shares of the company’s stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 5,841 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.01% of the company’s stock.

The Hain Celestial Group Stock Up 9.4%

HAIN stock opened at $1.97 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.90. The firm has a market cap of $177.80 million, a PE ratio of -1.02 and a beta of 1.05. The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $1.30 and a one year high of $9.43. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $3.18 and its 200 day moving average is $5.06.

The Hain Celestial Group (NASDAQ:HAIN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.12 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $390.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $414.45 million. The Hain Celestial Group had a negative net margin of 10.51% and a positive return on equity of 2.88%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.13 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. will post 0.4 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on HAIN shares. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of The Hain Celestial Group from $4.00 to $1.50 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of The Hain Celestial Group from $6.00 to $5.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of The Hain Celestial Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $1.50 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of The Hain Celestial Group from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of The Hain Celestial Group from $7.00 to $4.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, The Hain Celestial Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $4.39.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Hain Celestial Group

In related news, Director Celeste A. Clark acquired 83,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $1.79 per share, with a total value of $148,570.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 83,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $148,570. This trade represents a ? increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Dawn M. Zier acquired 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $1.60 per share, for a total transaction of $320,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 288,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $461,166.40. This represents a 226.68% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased a total of 286,200 shares of company stock valued at $481,498 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

About The Hain Celestial Group

The Hain Celestial Group, Inc manufactures, markets, and sells organic and natural products in United States, United Kingdom, Europe, and internationally. It operates through two segments: North America and International. The company offers infant formula; infant, toddler, and kids' food; plant-based beverages and frozen desserts, such as soy, rice, oat, and spelt; and condiments.