Citi maintains Herbalife stock Buy rating with $13 target

Published 21/03/2025, 12:20
Citi maintains Herbalife stock Buy rating with $13 target

Friday

Citi has reiterated a Buy rating and a $13.00 price target on Herbalife Nutrition Ltd (NYSE:HLF) shares. The firm’s analyst has analyzed recent web and app traffic data for Herbalife, noting several trends in the first quarter of 2025. Globally, there has been a consistent weakness in traffic, with a significant drop in average unique visitors to the company’s website. Despite these challenges, the company maintains strong fundamentals with a gross profit margin of 45.18% and annual revenue of $4.99 billion. In the United States, there was a noticeable reversal in the number of average unique visitors and total web visits, which had previously been growing in double digits in the latter part of 2024 but has since started to decline year-over-year.

In Mexico, the average active users of the Herbalife Shop app have seen a sequential softening in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the fourth quarter of 2024, now trending negatively year-over-year. Meanwhile, in India, the trend in average active users of the app remains unchanged, continuing at a -5.1% year-over-year in the first quarter of 2025, consistent with the previous quarter.

These observations were compiled by Citi’s Research Innovation Lab, which utilized data from Similarweb (NYSE:SMWB) and Sensor Tower for February to gauge Herbalife’s digital engagement. The analyst’s comments highlight the varying performance of Herbalife’s online platforms across different markets, with particular emphasis on the decline in the United States and Mexico, while India’s figures remain steady in their year-over-year decrease. For deeper insights into Herbalife’s performance across markets, InvestingPro subscribers can access comprehensive financial health metrics, where the company currently maintains a "GOOD" overall rating with particularly strong scores in profitability and relative value.

Herbalife Nutrition Ltd, a global nutrition company, has faced these challenges in digital engagement amidst its efforts to maintain its market presence. The maintained Buy rating and price target suggest that Citi sees potential for the company despite the noted trends in web and app traffic. InvestingPro analysis reveals additional insights through its exclusive ProTips, including strong free cash flow yield and expectations of continued profitability this year.

In other recent news, Herbalife Ltd. reported strong financial results for the fourth quarter of 2024, with earnings per share reaching $0.36, significantly surpassing the anticipated $0.11. Revenue also exceeded expectations, coming in at $1.2 billion, which was $10 million above forecasts. S&P Global Ratings upgraded Herbalife’s credit rating from ’B’ to ’B+’ due to deleveraging efforts, including the repayment of $65 million in debt, which reduced its outstanding 2025 notes to under $200 million. The company also announced plans to acquire Pro2col Health LLC, Pruvit Ventures, Inc., and a majority stake in Link BioSciences Inc., aiming to enhance its personalized nutrition offerings.

Moody’s Ratings has revised Herbalife’s outlook to stable from negative, acknowledging improvements in leverage and distributor recruitment, along with increased free cash flow. Mizuho (NYSE:MFG) Securities raised Herbalife’s stock target to $8, maintaining a neutral rating, noting positive distributor growth and a modest decrease in Q4 volume points. Herbalife’s strategic moves include deepening its relationship with soccer icon Cristiano Ronaldo, who will serve as an advisor for the development of the Pro2col platform. These developments reflect Herbalife’s efforts to modernize its business model and expand its health and wellness offerings.

This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.

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