Freedom Capital Upgrades Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) to “Strong-Buy”

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Freedom Capital from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Honest in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Morgan Stanley set a $3.40 price target on Honest in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Honest from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Northland Securities set a $5.50 price objective on Honest in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group increased their target price on Honest from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $4.38.

Honest Trading Up 0.7%

NASDAQ HNST opened at $5.46 on Thursday. Honest has a 12 month low of $2.07 and a 12 month high of $5.84. The stock has a market cap of $601.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -49.64 and a beta of 2.12. The company’s 50 day moving average is $3.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.19.

Honest (NASDAQ:HNST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $80.19 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $77.83 million. Honest had a negative net margin of 3.56% and a positive return on equity of 4.26%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Honest will post 0.1 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Honest

In other Honest news, CFO Curtiss James Bruce III sold 12,669 shares of Honest stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.14, for a total value of $39,780.66. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 526,157 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,652,132.98. The trade was a 2.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Carla Vernon sold 119,389 shares of Honest stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.14, for a total transaction of $374,881.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 3,946,451 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,391,856.14. This represents a 2.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 175,058 shares of company stock valued at $550,591. Insiders own 9.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Honest

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HNST. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Honest during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,662,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in shares of Honest during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $328,000. State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Honest during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $75,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in shares of Honest by 28.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 223,099 shares of the company’s stock valued at $656,000 after acquiring an additional 49,342 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amicus Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Honest in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. 45.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Honest

Here are the key news stories impacting Honest this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results beat expectations: Honest reported adjusted earnings of $0.04 per share, ahead of estimates ranging from $0.01 to $0.02 and up from $0.03 a year earlier. Revenue reached $80.19 million versus the $77.83 million consensus estimate. Honest Q2 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Raised 2026 outlook: Management increased its fiscal-year 2026 forecast to $319 million-$325 million in revenue and $23 million-$25 million in adjusted EBITDA, signaling confidence in profitability and operating execution. Honest Outlines Raised FY2026 Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst earnings estimates increased: Northland Securities raised its Q3 and Q4 2026 EPS forecasts to $0.03 from $0.02, while maintaining a $0.10 full-year consensus estimate. Honest analyst estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Strategic changes are showing progress: An analysis argues that Honest’s strategic exits are beginning to improve the business, but investors may need further evidence that the gains can be sustained. The Honest Company: Strategic Exits Are Starting To Work
• Negative Sentiment: Execution concerns remain: Another assessment says Honest is still awaiting more consistent improvements, highlighting the risk that recent operating gains may not yet represent a durable turnaround. The Honest Company – Awaiting More Consistent Improvements
• Neutral Sentiment: B. Riley raised its price target to $5 from $4 and retained a “Buy” rating, although the new target is below the recent trading level, limiting its immediate upside implication.

Honest Company Profile

The Honest Company, Inc (NASDAQ: HNST) is an American consumer goods firm specializing in eco-friendly and responsibly formulated products for babies, personal care, beauty and home cleaning. The company emphasizes transparency in ingredient sourcing and product safety, positioning itself in the premium segment of mass-market retail and direct-to-consumer channels.

Honest was founded in 2011 by actress Jessica Alba and environmental health advocate Christopher Gavigan with a mission to offer parents household and baby care items free from harsh chemicals and synthetic fragrances.