Nature’s Sunshine Products, Inc. (NASDAQ:NATR) Short Interest Update

Nature’s Sunshine Products, Inc. (NASDAQ:NATR) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 114,800 shares, a decline of 32.9% from the October 31st total of 171,200 shares. Approximately 0.8% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 38,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.0 days.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Fosun Pharmaceutical Shanghai sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.39, for a total transaction of $40,170.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 69,347 shares in the company, valued at $928,556.33. The trade was a 4.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 7,499 shares of company stock worth $99,802 over the last 90 days. 4.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nature’s Sunshine Products

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of NATR. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Nature’s Sunshine Products by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 659,686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,702,000 after purchasing an additional 3,792 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Nature’s Sunshine Products by 16.5% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 7,040 shares of the company’s stock valued at $146,000 after purchasing an additional 998 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its stake in Nature’s Sunshine Products by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 58,507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,215,000 after purchasing an additional 927 shares during the last quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP raised its stake in Nature’s Sunshine Products by 23.9% during the 2nd quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 6,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Nature’s Sunshine Products by 12.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 48,589 shares of the company’s stock valued at $732,000 after purchasing an additional 5,425 shares during the last quarter. 79.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NATR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Nature’s Sunshine Products from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group started coverage on shares of Nature’s Sunshine Products in a research report on Friday, September 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $18.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Nature’s Sunshine Products from $23.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group started coverage on shares of Nature’s Sunshine Products in a research report on Friday, September 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $18.00 target price for the company.

Nature’s Sunshine Products Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NATR traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $16.24. 20,167 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 52,680. The company’s 50 day moving average is $14.10 and its 200 day moving average is $14.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $300.12 million, a P/E ratio of 18.35 and a beta of 0.87. Nature’s Sunshine Products has a one year low of $10.81 and a one year high of $21.72.

About Nature’s Sunshine Products

Nature’s Sunshine Products, Inc, a natural health and wellness company, manufactures and sells nutritional and personal care products in Asia, Europe, North America, Latin America, and internationally. It offers general health products related to blood sugar support, bone health, cellular health, cognitive function, joint health, mood, sexual health, sleep, sports and energy, and vision.