Stifel Nicolaus Boosts Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Price Target to $30.00

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) had its price target raised by investment analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $22.00 to $30.00 in a research report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price target points to a potential upside of 11.11% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the company. TheStreet raised Vital Farms from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. Lake Street Capital raised their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, William Blair began coverage on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.00.

Vital Farms Stock Performance

Shares of VITL stock opened at $27.00 on Friday. Vital Farms has a fifty-two week low of $10.00 and a fifty-two week high of $27.37. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $22.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 3.00 and a quick ratio of 2.49. The firm has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.55 and a beta of 0.89.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.03. Vital Farms had a return on equity of 14.22% and a net margin of 5.42%. The firm had revenue of $135.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $131.10 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.04 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Vital Farms will post 0.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vital Farms

In related news, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 27,528 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.49, for a total value of $426,408.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 223,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,463,068.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Vital Farms news, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 27,528 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.49, for a total transaction of $426,408.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 223,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,463,068.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Matthew Ohayer sold 100,000 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.38, for a total transaction of $2,138,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 7,582,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $162,119,772.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 260,125 shares of company stock valued at $5,580,996. Corporate insiders own 30.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Vital Farms

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VITL. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 82.1% in the first quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 373,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,681,000 after buying an additional 168,296 shares during the last quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Vital Farms in the 1st quarter valued at about $656,000. Ranger Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Vital Farms in the fourth quarter worth about $3,016,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in shares of Vital Farms by 211.4% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 4,192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vital Farms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $720,000. Institutional investors own 98.59% of the company’s stock.

About Vital Farms

Vital Farms, Inc, a food company, provides pasture-raised products in the United States. It offers shell eggs, butter, hard-boiled eggs, and liquid whole eggs. The company was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.