Virtu Financial LLC Makes New Investment in Warby Parker Inc. $WRBY

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in Warby Parker Inc. (NYSE:WRBY) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 36,013 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $785,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WRBY. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Warby Parker by 101.0% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 171,271 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,122,000 after purchasing an additional 86,053 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in Warby Parker by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 52,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $961,000 after buying an additional 2,297 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Warby Parker by 96.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,888,817 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,433,000 after buying an additional 929,073 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new position in Warby Parker during the 1st quarter valued at about $252,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Warby Parker by 17.6% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 257,020 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,685,000 after buying an additional 38,395 shares in the last quarter. 93.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Warby Parker news, Director Teresa Briggs sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.94, for a total value of $129,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 48,883 shares in the company, valued at $1,268,025.02. This trade represents a 9.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Youngme E. Moon sold 10,000 shares of Warby Parker stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.53, for a total transaction of $265,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 26,061 shares in the company, valued at approximately $691,398.33. This trade represents a 27.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 203,040 shares of company stock worth $5,470,026. Company insiders own 16.80% of the company’s stock.

Warby Parker Trading Up 3.8%

NYSE:WRBY opened at $26.95 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $24.90 and a 200-day moving average of $24.61. The firm has a market cap of $2.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1,348.32 and a beta of 1.96. Warby Parker Inc. has a twelve month low of $14.96 and a twelve month high of $31.00.

Warby Parker (NYSE:WRBY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by ($0.08). Warby Parker had a return on equity of 2.30% and a net margin of 0.15%.The business had revenue of $242.45 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.44 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.03 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Warby Parker Inc. will post 0.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WRBY has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Warby Parker from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Warby Parker in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. UBS Group upped their target price on Warby Parker from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. BTIG Research increased their price target on Warby Parker from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Warby Parker in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Warby Parker currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $29.50.

Warby Parker Company Profile

Warby Parker, Inc (NYSE: WRBY) is a U.S.-based eyewear company that designs, manufactures and sells prescription glasses, sunglasses and contact lenses through a direct-to-consumer model. Since its founding, the company has combined online and brick-and-mortar channels to streamline the customer experience, offering features such as virtual try-on technology and a home try-on program that allows consumers to sample frames before purchase.

Established in 2010 by Wharton graduates Neil Blumenthal, Dave Gilboa, Andrew Hunt and Jeffrey Raider, Warby Parker set out to disrupt the traditional optical market by controlling the entire supply chain—from frame design and lens production to warehousing and distribution.