Barclays Upgrades HealthEquity (NASDAQ:HQY) to Strong-Buy

HealthEquity (NASDAQ:HQY) was upgraded by equities researchers at Barclays to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on HealthEquity from $126.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating on shares of HealthEquity in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of HealthEquity in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. KeyCorp reduced their target price on HealthEquity from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of HealthEquity in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, HealthEquity presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $120.27.

HealthEquity Price Performance

Shares of HealthEquity stock opened at $97.30 on Monday. HealthEquity has a 52 week low of $74.07 and a 52 week high of $116.65. The company has a current ratio of 4.13, a quick ratio of 4.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market cap of $8.31 billion, a PE ratio of 44.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.18. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $96.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $96.70.

HealthEquity (NASDAQ:HQY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 3rd. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.11. HealthEquity had a net margin of 14.86% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The company had revenue of $322.16 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $320.92 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.78 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. HealthEquity has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.870-3.950 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that HealthEquity will post 2.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at HealthEquity

In related news, EVP Delano Ladd sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.11, for a total value of $564,660.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 79,456 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,477,604.16. This represents a 7.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Michael Henry Fiore sold 1,781 shares of HealthEquity stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.21, for a total transaction of $157,102.01. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 49,795 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,392,416.95. This trade represents a 3.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 10,781 shares of company stock worth $1,016,707. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HealthEquity

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HQY. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in HealthEquity by 50.6% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,446,198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $216,171,000 after buying an additional 821,425 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in HealthEquity during the second quarter valued at about $75,072,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP boosted its stake in HealthEquity by 124.6% during the 2nd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 1,265,208 shares of the company’s stock valued at $132,543,000 after purchasing an additional 701,819 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in HealthEquity by 148.5% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,107,448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,016,000 after buying an additional 661,795 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new position in HealthEquity in the 1st quarter worth approximately $53,076,000. Institutional investors own 99.55% of the company’s stock.

About HealthEquity

HealthEquity, Inc provides technology-enabled services platforms to consumers and employers in the United States. The company offers cloud-based platforms for individuals to make health saving and spending decisions, pay healthcare bills, receive personalized benefit information, earn wellness incentives, grow their savings, and make investment choices; and health savings accounts.