Medifast, Inc. (NYSE:MED) Holdings Decreased by DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale decreased its holdings in shares of Medifast, Inc. (NYSE:MED) by 45.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,932 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 6,567 shares during the quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale’s holdings in Medifast were worth $536,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of Medifast by 223.8% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 531 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Middle East FZE purchased a new position in Medifast in the fourth quarter valued at about $57,000. State of Wyoming grew its stake in Medifast by 79.2% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 733 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in Medifast by 76.6% in the third quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 869 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its stake in Medifast by 15.4% in the first quarter. FMR LLC now owns 972 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $101,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Medifast

In other news, Director Scott Schlackman sold 4,053 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.44, for a total transaction of $159,850.32. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at approximately $307,040.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Medifast Stock Performance

MED opened at $31.35 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $341.72 million, a PE ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $40.19 and a 200-day moving average of $57.29. Medifast, Inc. has a 52-week low of $30.95 and a 52-week high of $109.52.

Medifast (NYSE:MED) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The specialty retailer reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $191.02 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $184.17 million. Medifast had a return on equity of 56.06% and a net margin of 9.27%. The firm’s revenue was down 43.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.70 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Medifast, Inc. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. TheStreet downgraded Medifast from a “c” rating to a “d+” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. DA Davidson lowered their target price on Medifast from $67.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st.

Medifast Company Profile

Medifast, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of weight loss, weight management, and healthy living products in the United States and the Asia-Pacific. It offers bars, puffs, cereal, crunchers, drinks, hearty choices, oatmeal, pancakes, pudding, soft serve, shakes, smoothies, soft bakes, and soups under the OPTAVIA, OPTAVIA ACTIVE, and Optimal Health brand names.