Simplify Asset Management Inc. Makes New Investment in Warby Parker Inc. $WRBY

Simplify Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Warby Parker Inc. (NYSE:WRBY) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 400,343 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,723,000. Warby Parker makes up 0.1% of Simplify Asset Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Warby Parker by 3.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,665,529 shares of the company’s stock worth $294,155,000 after purchasing an additional 327,830 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Warby Parker by 40.9% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,303,341 shares of the company’s stock worth $201,426,000 after purchasing an additional 2,120,768 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in Warby Parker by 10.1% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,060,103 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,818,000 after purchasing an additional 189,758 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Warby Parker by 96.8% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,888,817 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,433,000 after purchasing an additional 929,073 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TimesSquare Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Warby Parker by 34.2% during the fourth quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC now owns 1,353,554 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,494,000 after purchasing an additional 344,879 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.24% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Warby Parker

In related news, Director Bradley E. Singer sold 20,167 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.51, for a total value of $574,961.17. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 104,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,988,788.83. This trade represents a 16.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Neil Harris Blumenthal sold 75,213 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.56, for a total value of $1,847,231.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 50,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,232,052.40. This represents a 59.99% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 203,833 shares of company stock worth $5,509,808. Company insiders own 16.80% of the company’s stock.

Warby Parker Price Performance

NYSE WRBY opened at $25.10 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $2.69 billion, a PE ratio of 1,255.63 and a beta of 1.95. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $23.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.57. Warby Parker Inc. has a 1-year low of $14.96 and a 1-year high of $31.00.

Warby Parker (NYSE:WRBY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.11 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $242.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $239.44 million. Warby Parker had a net margin of 0.15% and a return on equity of 2.30%. The business’s revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.03 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Warby Parker Inc. will post 0.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WRBY. Weiss Ratings upgraded Warby Parker from a “sell (d)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Warby Parker in a research report on Friday. BTIG Research increased their price target on Warby Parker from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on Warby Parker from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Warby Parker from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Warby Parker presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $29.50.

About Warby Parker

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.