Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Price Target Raised to $44.00

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) had its target price upped by Stifel Nicolaus from $34.00 to $44.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a hold rating on the stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Craig Hallum began coverage on Vital Farms in a report on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Vital Farms from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.33.

Vital Farms Price Performance

Vital Farms stock opened at $43.14 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.73. The company has a quick ratio of 2.81, a current ratio of 3.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.52 and a beta of 0.88. Vital Farms has a 52-week low of $14.37 and a 52-week high of $48.41.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $145.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $145.27 million. Vital Farms had a net margin of 8.68% and a return on equity of 22.29%. The business’s revenue was up 31.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.10 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Vital Farms will post 1.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vital Farms

In other news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 24,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.19, for a total value of $1,036,560.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,014,890 shares in the company, valued at approximately $302,973,099.10. This trade represents a 0.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 44,728 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.66, for a total value of $1,684,456.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 613,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,115,595.02. The trade was a 6.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 190,202 shares of company stock worth $7,855,957. Insiders own 27.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Vital Farms by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 749,659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,296,000 after acquiring an additional 31,187 shares during the period. Emerald Advisers LLC increased its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 106.8% in the third quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 706,440 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,775,000 after purchasing an additional 364,837 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 35.6% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 655,811 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,999,000 after purchasing an additional 172,249 shares during the last quarter. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 93.9% during the third quarter. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust now owns 531,676 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,646,000 after purchasing an additional 257,492 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Vital Farms by 651.3% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 494,153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,112,000 after buying an additional 428,382 shares during the last quarter. 98.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.