Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Reaches New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $22.00 to $30.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Vital Farms traded as high as $27.41 and last traded at $27.21, with a volume of 36901 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $27.00.

VITL has been the topic of a number of other reports. Lake Street Capital raised their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. TheStreet raised Vital Farms from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, William Blair assumed coverage on Vital Farms in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.00.

Insider Activity 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 shares were sold at an average price of $15.49, for a total value of $426,408.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 223,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,463,068.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, COO Jason Dale sold 14,006 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.03, for a total transaction of $224,516.18. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 48,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $776,733.65. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 27,528 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was 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 approximately $3,463,068.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 260,125 shares of company stock worth $5,580,996. 30.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vital Farms

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Vital Farms by 25.1% during the 3rd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 2,062,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,884,000 after buying an additional 413,475 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its position in shares of Vital Farms by 79.3% during the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 524,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,075,000 after purchasing an additional 231,985 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 725.5% in the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 250,953 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,906,000 after purchasing an additional 220,552 shares in the last quarter. Ranger Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Vital Farms in the 4th quarter valued at $3,016,000. Finally, Rice Hall James & Associates LLC increased its stake in Vital Farms by 82.1% during the 1st quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 373,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,681,000 after purchasing an additional 168,296 shares in the last quarter. 98.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Vital Farms Stock Down 0.6 %

The firm has a market cap of $1.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.28 and a beta of 0.88. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $22.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a current ratio of 3.00.

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

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.