1-800-FLOWERS.COM (NASDAQ:FLWS) Shares Gap Up After Insider Buying Activity

1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. (NASDAQ:FLWS) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following insider buying activity. The stock had previously closed at $8.40, but opened at $8.58. 1-800-FLOWERS.COM shares last traded at $8.66, with a volume of 30,770 shares changing hands.

Specifically, major shareholder Fund 1 Investments, Llc purchased 89,301 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $8.38 per share, with a total value of $748,342.38. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 4,668,665 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,123,412.70. This represents a 1.95 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Fund 1 Investments, Llc purchased 37,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $8.15 per share, with a total value of $301,550.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 4,579,364 shares in the company, valued at $37,321,816.60. This trade represents a 0.81 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on FLWS shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM in a research note on Saturday, January 18th. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM from $7.00 to $7.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 9th.

1-800-FLOWERS.COM Stock Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $7.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $8.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $568.35 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -63.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 1.58.

1-800-FLOWERS.COM (NASDAQ:FLWS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The specialty retailer reported ($0.51) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.53) by $0.02. 1-800-FLOWERS.COM had a negative net margin of 0.50% and a positive return on equity of 2.10%. The firm had revenue of $193.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $246.88 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.48) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 28.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. will post 0.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On 1-800-FLOWERS.COM

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FLWS. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM in the 3rd quarter valued at about $106,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM by 13.0% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 14,095 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 1,623 shares during the period. Paloma Partners Management Co bought a new stake in shares of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM in the 3rd quarter valued at about $121,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in shares of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 32,034 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 2,148 shares during the period. 38.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

1-800-FLOWERS.COM Company Profile

1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc provides gifts for various occasions in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Consumer Floral & Gifts, Gourmet Foods & Gift Baskets, and BloomNet. The company offers a range of products, including fresh-cut flowers, floral and fruit arrangements, plants, gifts, personalized products, dipped berries, popcorns, gourmet foods and gift baskets, cookies, chocolates, candies, wines, and gift-quality fruits.