Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Upgraded at Benchmark

Benchmark upgraded shares of Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Thursday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $10.00 price objective (down from $34.00) on shares of Vital Farms in a report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Vital Farms from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. TD Cowen lowered Vital Farms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $25.00 to $16.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. DA Davidson upgraded Vital Farms to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Vital Farms from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.18.

Vital Farms Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of NASDAQ VITL opened at $12.24 on Thursday. Vital Farms has a 1-year low of $7.95 and a 1-year high of $53.13. The company has a 50-day moving average of $11.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.58. The company has a market cap of $524.48 million, a PE ratio of -306.00 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.47) EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.47). The business had revenue of $166.03 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $160.24 million. Vital Farms had a net margin of 0.02% and a return on equity of 3.46%. Vital Farms’s revenue was down 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.36 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Vital Farms will post -0.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Farms

In other Vital Farms news, insider Joseph Michael Holland acquired 12,484 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $8.00 per share, with a total value of $99,872.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 38,150 shares in the company, valued at $305,200. The trade was a 48.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Peter Nicholas Pappas bought 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $8.51 per share, with a total value of $29,785.00. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 85,169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $724,788.19. This trade represents a 4.29% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders bought a total of 38,700 shares of company stock valued at $320,864 in the last three months. Insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in VITL. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Vital Farms in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,442,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Vital Farms by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,520,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,564,000 after buying an additional 142,790 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its stake in Vital Farms by 119.4% in the fourth quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 238,915 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,631,000 after purchasing an additional 130,000 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Vital Farms by 22.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,845,714 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,892,000 after purchasing an additional 530,008 shares during the period. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 79.4% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,173,263 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,474,000 after acquiring an additional 519,369 shares during the period. 98.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vital Farms News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Vital Farms this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment improved: Needham raised its price target from $13 to $14 and assigned a “Buy” rating, implying approximately 14.4% upside. Benchmark also upgraded Vital Farms from “Hold” to “Buy.” Needham price target update Benchmark upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Revenue exceeded expectations: Second-quarter revenue was $166.03 million, ahead of the $160.24 million analyst estimate. Management’s fiscal 2026 revenue outlook of $775 million to $800 million was described as optimistic and is broadly aligned with the $778.3 million consensus forecast. Vital Farms second-quarter results
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings were roughly in line: Vital Farms reported a second-quarter loss of $0.47 per share, approximately matching consensus estimates, although estimates varied slightly among data providers. The company’s earnings call transcript provides additional management commentary on the results and outlook. Q2 2026 earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Profitability weakened: Revenue declined 10.2% year over year, and the quarterly result compares with earnings of $0.36 per share in the same period last year, highlighting significant year-over-year earnings pressure. Vital Farms Q2 earnings report
• Negative Sentiment: New borrowing adds financial risk: Silver Point Capital led a $125 million term-loan financing for Vital Farms. The funding may support operations or growth, but it also increases leverage and future interest obligations. Vital Farms term loan financing

Vital Farms Company Profile

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.