Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVO) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVO) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $16.6667.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Mission Produce from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. UBS Group set a $16.00 target price on shares of Mission Produce in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Mission Produce from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 13th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mission Produce

In other Mission Produce news, Director Jay A. Pack purchased 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $12.10 per share, for a total transaction of $484,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 579,965 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,017,576.50. The trade was a 7.41% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Bruce C. Taylor purchased 300,000 shares of Mission Produce stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $11.29 per share, for a total transaction of $3,387,000.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 455,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,146,456.18. This trade represents a 192.50% 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 acquired 3,352,161 shares of company stock worth $42,458,664. Insiders own 30.85% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mission Produce

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AVO. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Mission Produce in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Mission Produce during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new position in shares of Mission Produce in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Mission Produce in the 2nd quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Mission Produce by 211.8% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,649 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 3,158 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.57% of the company’s stock.

Mission Produce Price Performance

Mission Produce stock opened at $13.24 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.38 and a beta of 0.49. Mission Produce has a one year low of $10.07 and a one year high of $15.53. The business has a fifty day moving average of $12.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $13.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.91.

Mission Produce announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Monday, June 8th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 13.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

About Mission Produce

Mission Produce, Inc is a leading global supplier, packer and distributor of fresh avocados, serving retail, foodservice and industrial customers. The company manages a vertically integrated supply chain that spans sourcing, post-harvest handling, packing and ripening. Through proprietary ripening technologies and cold-chain logistics, Mission Produce delivers consistent quality and extended shelf life for its avocado offerings.

Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Oxnard, California, Mission Produce grew from a regional packing operation into a publicly traded company listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker AVO.