Coty (NYSE:COTY) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Coty Inc. (NYSE:COTY) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $5.54, but opened at $5.77. Coty shares last traded at $5.73, with a volume of 1,143,024 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on COTY shares. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price objective on shares of Coty from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Coty from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Coty from $8.50 to $8.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Coty from $15.00 to $10.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Coty from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Coty currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $9.78.

Coty Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The company has a market capitalization of $4.93 billion, a PE ratio of -565.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.97. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $6.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $7.40.

Coty (NYSE:COTY) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.11). Coty had a net margin of 0.22% and a return on equity of 6.34%. Equities analysts anticipate that Coty Inc. will post 0.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Coty

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Atria Investments Inc grew its holdings in Coty by 19.3% in the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 18,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $175,000 after buying an additional 3,022 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Coty by 30.1% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 1,388,226 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,036,000 after purchasing an additional 321,221 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in Coty during the third quarter worth approximately $3,681,000. Hilton Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Coty by 18.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hilton Capital Management LLC now owns 152,643 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,433,000 after purchasing an additional 23,567 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Coty by 116.5% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 42,944 shares of the company’s stock valued at $403,000 after purchasing an additional 23,110 shares during the last quarter. 42.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Coty

Coty Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells beauty products worldwide. It operates through Prestige and Consumer Beauty segments. The company provides fragrance, color cosmetics, and skin and body care products. It offers Prestige segment products primarily through prestige retailers, including perfumeries, department stores, e-retailers, direct-to-consumer websites, and duty-free shops under the Burberry, Calvin Klein, Chloe, Davidoff, Escada, Gucci, Hugo Boss, Jil Sander, Joop!, Kylie Jenner, Lancaster, Marc Jacobs, Miu Miu, Orveda, philosophy, SKKN BY KIM, and Tiffany & Co brands.