Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Hits New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $14.00 and last traded at $14.0580, with a volume of 507690 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $14.51.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VITL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $50.00 to $35.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Zacks Research cut shares of Vital Farms from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $45.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $24.00 price target (down from $45.00) on shares of Vital Farms in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $47.00 price objective on shares of Vital Farms and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.00.

Vital Farms Stock Down 3.4%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $24.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $32.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $628.19 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.68 and a beta of 1.14.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $213.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $212.83 million. Vital Farms had a return on equity of 20.69% and a net margin of 8.73%.The firm’s revenue was up 28.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.23 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Vital Farms

In other news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.85, for a total value of $771,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 6,361,190 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,242,711.50. This represents a 0.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Karl Khoury acquired 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $18.45 per share, for a total transaction of $92,250.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 119,789 shares in the company, valued at $2,210,107.05. This represents a 4.36% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 65,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,736,050. 21.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Farms

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 131.7% in the third quarter. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP now owns 993,338 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,876,000 after purchasing an additional 564,711 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Vital Farms by 23.1% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,377,681 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,692,000 after buying an additional 258,092 shares during the period. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Vital Farms in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,728,000. Citigroup Inc. grew its position in shares of Vital Farms by 554.1% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 95,258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,920,000 after buying an additional 80,694 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 2.4% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 807,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,089,000 after buying an additional 18,682 shares during the period. 98.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Vital Farms

Vital Farms, traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol VITL, is a U.S.-based food company specializing in pasture-raised egg and dairy products. The company partners with a network of family farms across the United States to produce eggs, butter and related items under a certified humane, pasture-centric farming model. Vital Farms’ supply chain emphasizes animal welfare, environmental stewardship and transparent sourcing, appealing to consumers seeking ethically produced, high-quality ingredients.

Founded in 2007 and headquartered in Austin, Texas, Vital Farms began by marketing pasture-raised eggs to health- and ethically minded shoppers.