Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd. Lowers Holdings in Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF)

Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd. decreased its position in Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,102,717 shares of the company’s stock after selling 18,750 shares during the period. Herbalife comprises approximately 4.5% of Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd. owned 3.13% of Herbalife worth $47,347,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Iridian Asset Management LLC CT lifted its position in Herbalife by 49.1% in the fourth quarter. Iridian Asset Management LLC CT now owns 1,468,636 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,411,000 after purchasing an additional 483,635 shares during the period. UBS Group AG boosted its position in shares of Herbalife by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 3,989,128 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,808,000 after acquiring an additional 209,949 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Herbalife by 0.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,561,779 shares of the company’s stock valued at $147,759,000 after acquiring an additional 43,452 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Herbalife by 9.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,742,507 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,378,000 after purchasing an additional 147,003 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC acquired a new position in Herbalife in the third quarter worth about $381,000.

Herbalife Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HLF traded up $0.27 during trading on Thursday, reaching $10.58. The company had a trading volume of 1,829,043 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,237,349. Herbalife Ltd. has a 52 week low of $6.68 and a 52 week high of $19.48. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $8.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.45. The stock has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of 7.72 and a beta of 1.24.

Herbalife (NYSE:HLF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.12. Herbalife had a negative return on equity of 19.97% and a net margin of 2.70%. The firm had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.26 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.54 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Herbalife Ltd. will post 1.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Herbalife news, CEO Michael Johnson acquired 61,725 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $8.07 per share, for a total transaction of $498,120.75. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 603,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,871,915.49. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Michael Johnson purchased 61,725 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $8.07 per share, with a total value of $498,120.75. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 603,707 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,871,915.49. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Donal L. Mulligan purchased 30,000 shares of Herbalife stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $9.65 per share, for a total transaction of $289,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 60,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $579,000. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have acquired 118,757 shares of company stock valued at $1,041,788. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HLF has been the topic of several analyst reports. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Herbalife from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Herbalife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Herbalife from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $9.50 price target on shares of Herbalife in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.50.

Herbalife Company Profile

Herbalife Ltd. provides health and wellness products in North America, Mexico, South and Central America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, China, and the Asia Pacific. It offers products in the areas of weight management; targeted nutrition; energy, sports, and fitness; outer nutrition; and literature and promotional items.