Stephens Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Medifast (NYSE:MED) Stock Price

Medifast (NYSE:MED) had its price objective dropped by research analysts at Stephens from $15.00 to $12.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the specialty retailer’s stock. Stephens’ price target points to a potential upside of 12.06% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on MED. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Medifast in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Medifast from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $12.00.

Medifast Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:MED opened at $10.71 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $117.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.26 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a 50 day moving average of $11.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.31. Medifast has a 52-week low of $10.10 and a 52-week high of $15.95.

Medifast (NYSE:MED) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The specialty retailer reported ($0.55) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.76) by $0.21. The business had revenue of $75.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $71.40 million. Medifast had a negative net margin of 4.84% and a negative return on equity of 4.19%. Medifast has set its FY 2026 guidance at -2.750–1.55 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at -0.700–0.15 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Medifast will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Medifast

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Medifast by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 411,101 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $5,769,000 after buying an additional 25,378 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in Medifast in the second quarter worth about $307,000. CWM LLC boosted its stake in Medifast by 564.6% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 7,457 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $105,000 after acquiring an additional 6,335 shares during the period. Peapod Lane Capital LLC boosted its position in Medifast by 26.0% during the 2nd quarter. Peapod Lane Capital LLC now owns 87,194 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,225,000 after purchasing an additional 17,994 shares during the period. Finally, Divisadero Street Capital Management LP bought a new position in Medifast during the 2nd quarter worth $1,122,000. 95.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Medifast Company Profile

Medifast, Inc (NYSE: MED) is a health and wellness company specializing in clinically supported weight-loss, weight-management and healthy living products and services. Through its OPTAVIA brand, the company offers a range of meal replacement products, snacks, supplements and coaching programs designed to support metabolic health and sustainable lifestyle changes. Medifast markets its products directly to consumers via a network of independent distributors—known as OPTAVIA Coaches—who provide personalized guidance and support throughout the client’s weight‐loss journey.

Founded in 1980 by William Vitale and headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, Medifast has grown into a nationally recognized provider of nutrition and weight‐management solutions.