Medifast, Inc. (NYSE:MED) Shares Bought by LPL Financial LLC

LPL Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Medifast, Inc. (NYSE:MED – Get Rating) by 66.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,750 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 5,505 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.13% of Medifast worth $1,586,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hollencrest Capital Management purchased a new stake in Medifast during the 4th quarter valued at about $92,000. TD Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in Medifast during the 4th quarter valued at about $438,000. Aviance Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Medifast during the 4th quarter valued at about $341,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Medifast during the 4th quarter valued at about $7,794,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Medifast during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,271,000. 86.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MED has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Medifast in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. DA Davidson cut their price target on Medifast from $94.00 to $71.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 2nd.

Insider Transactions at Medifast

In other news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown purchased 754 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $89.74 per share, for a total transaction of $67,663.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 37,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,382,749.30. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Scott Schlackman sold 2,200 shares of Medifast stock in a transaction on Friday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.68, for a total value of $239,096.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,280 shares in the company, valued at $791,190.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jeffrey J. Brown bought 754 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $89.74 per share, with a total value of $67,663.96. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 37,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,382,749.30. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Medifast Stock Performance

Shares of Medifast stock opened at $84.37 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $918.79 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.61 and a beta of 1.24. Medifast, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $80.52 and a fifty-two week high of $192.44. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $94.41 and a 200 day moving average of $107.93.

Medifast (NYSE:MED – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 1st. The specialty retailer reported $3.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $1.27. Medifast had a return on equity of 106.70% and a net margin of 9.27%. The company had revenue of $349.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $319.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.59 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Medifast, Inc. will post 8.86 EPS for the current year.

Medifast Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 28th were given a dividend of $1.65 per share. This is a positive change from Medifast’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. This represents a $6.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.82%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 27th. Medifast’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.68%.

About Medifast

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Medifast, Inc engages in the provision of healthy living products and programs. It offers the OPTAVIA brand, a lifestyle solution centered on developing new healthy habits through smaller, foundational changes called micro-habits. The firm’s product line includes bars, bites, pretzels, puffs, cereal crunch, drinks, hearty choices, oatmeal, pancakes, pudding, soft serve, shakes, smoothies, soft bakes, and soups.