Medifast (NYSE:MED) Stock Bumped Up to Strong-Buy by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Medifast to “strong buy” from “hold,” though analyst sentiment remains mixed overall: MarketBeat reports a consensus “hold” rating and a $12 average price target.
• Medifast opened at $11.84, with its shares trading between a 12-month low of $9.22 and high of $13.58. The company recently beat quarterly EPS and revenue expectations, but reported negative margins and return on equity.
• Insider activity was mixed, with a director selling 9,544 shares while another purchased 43,150 shares; institutional investors own approximately 95.51% of the company.

Medifast (NYSE:MED - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings upgraded Medifast from a "sell (e+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $12.00.

Medifast Price Performance

Medifast stock opened at $11.84 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $11.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.46. Medifast has a twelve month low of $9.22 and a twelve month high of $13.58.

Medifast (NYSE:MED - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The specialty retailer reported ($0.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.65) by $0.37. The firm had revenue of $76.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $72.70 million. Medifast had a negative return on equity of 6.69% and a negative net margin of 8.08%. Medifast has set its FY 2026 guidance at -1.750--0.250 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at -0.650--0.150 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Medifast will post -1.04 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Medifast

In other Medifast news, Director Daniel R. Chard sold 9,544 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.73, for a total value of $111,951.12. Following the transaction, the director owned 130,609 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,532,043.57. The trade was a 6.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Parsa Kiai acquired 43,150 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $12.26 per share, with a total value of $529,019.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 707,492 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,673,851.92. The trade was a 6.50% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have acquired a total of 119,966 shares of company stock valued at $1,423,576 in the last three months. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Medifast

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. State of Wyoming lifted its stake in Medifast by 19.8% in the first quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 6,646 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 1,097 shares during the period. Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Medifast in the second quarter valued at $75,000. Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new position in Medifast during the 2nd quarter valued at $114,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new position in Medifast during the 2nd quarter valued at $214,000. Finally, Chico Wealth RIA purchased a new position in Medifast during the 2nd quarter valued at $223,000. 95.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Medifast

Medifast, Inc is a health and wellness company that provides weight-management and healthy-living products and services. Its primary brand, OPTAVIA, offers meal replacements, snacks, supplements and other nutrition products designed to support structured weight-management programs.

The company's programs combine nutrition products with guidance from independent OPTAVIA Coaches. These coaches provide accountability, support and lifestyle guidance intended to help clients develop healthier eating and activity habits.

Medifast was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland.

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