Finding buying opportunities in stocks these days can be a bit of a challenge. This is less like finding a needle in a haystack, and more like finding one particular needle in a stack of needles. However, Bank of America released a report that calls for optical retail stock NationaI Vision Holdings (EYE) to do a lot better than some might think. Investors responded accordingly, and sent shares rocketing up over 7% in Thursday afternoon’s trading.
A report from CNBC noted that Bank of America, via analyst Robert Ohmes—who has a five-star rating on TipRanks—looks for a big second half for National Vision. That was enough to send the rating on National Vision stock from Underperform straight up to Buy, a full double upgrade. Plus, Ohmes nearly doubled the stock’s price target, going from $13 per share to $22. That represents a potential 41% upside against Wednesday’s closing price.
The latest quarter gave a lot of useful benefits for National Vision, Ohmes noted. Not only did National Vision have some great luck in recruiting, but it also improved pricing on its goods, and that gave it an extra edge. In fact, customer traffic actually turned positive in the last quarter, and the momentum is clearly focused upward. A growing lineup of $99 frames and new advertising is catching on, and National Vision is poised to be a big name in eyeglass provision.
That Wasn’t All
There were other analysts coming in on National Vision’s side, too, though perhaps not as vociferously as Ohmes. Zachary Fadem with Wells Fargo, who also has a five-star rating on TipRanks, kept his Equal-Weight position on National Vision, but stepped up the price target from $13 to $15 per share.
Finally, reports noted that Anthony Chukumba, another five-star analyst on TipRanks, but this time with Loop Capital, maintained a Buy rating on National Vision, but hiked the price target from $18 per share to $20. Chukumba noted that comparable store sales are on the rise, and that was enough to send price targets up a notch.
Is EYE a Good Stock to Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on EYE stock based on four Buys and four Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 10.56% rally in its share price over the past year, the average EYE price target of $15.93 per share implies 4.95% downside risk.
