William Blair Upgrades Torrid (NYSE:CURV) to Outperform

Torrid (NYSE:CURV) was upgraded by analysts at William Blair from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report released on Tuesday, Briefing.com reports.

CURV has been the topic of a number of other reports. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $8.00 target price on shares of Torrid in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Morgan Stanley lowered Torrid from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $5.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Torrid currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $5.45.

Torrid Price Performance

CURV opened at $3.96 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $413.23 million, a P/E ratio of 36.00 and a beta of 2.01. The company’s 50-day moving average is $7.16 and its 200 day moving average is $6.12. Torrid has a fifty-two week low of $1.25 and a fifty-two week high of $9.14.

Torrid (NYSE:CURV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 4th. The company reported $0.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.01. Torrid had a negative return on equity of 6.77% and a net margin of 1.21%. The company had revenue of $284.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $282.87 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.06 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Torrid will post 0.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Torrid

In other news, major shareholder Sycamore Partners Torrid, L.L. sold 7,282,942 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.80, for a total transaction of $27,675,179.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 75,069,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $285,262,367.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Elizabeth Munoz sold 188,189 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.80, for a total value of $715,118.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,976,911 shares in the company, valued at $7,512,261.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Sycamore Partners Torrid, L.L. sold 7,282,942 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.80, for a total value of $27,675,179.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 75,069,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $285,262,367.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,969,218 shares of company stock worth $30,283,028. 9.77% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Torrid

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its position in Torrid by 161.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 38,180 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,000 after acquiring an additional 23,553 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its position in Torrid by 145.5% during the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 85,162 shares of the company’s stock valued at $416,000 after buying an additional 50,466 shares during the period. Fund 1 Investments LLC raised its holdings in Torrid by 493.6% in the 4th quarter. Fund 1 Investments LLC now owns 200,641 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,158,000 after purchasing an additional 166,841 shares during the period. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Torrid during the 4th quarter worth approximately $93,000. 81.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Torrid

Torrid Holdings Inc operates in women's plus-size apparel and intimates market in North America. The company designs, develops, and merchandises its products under the Torrid, Torrid Curve, CURV, and Lovesick brand names. It is involved in the sale of tops, bottoms, dresses, denims, activewear, intimates, sleep wear, swim wear, and outerwear products; and non-apparel products comprising accessories, footwear, and beauty products.