DA Davidson Reaffirms "Neutral" Rating for Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL)

Key Points

• DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating but cut its price target sharply to $16 (from $47)
• Multiple brokers have trimmed targets and downgraded VITL recently, yet MarketBeat's consensus remains a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $34.08 (8 Buy, 5 Hold, 1 Sell).
• In the latest quarter Vital Farms posted $0.35 EPS (missing by $0.03) while revenue rose 28.6% YoY; the stock trades near $14.18 with a market cap of roughly $607.6M, insiders own 21.3% and institutions about 98.6% of shares.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "neutral" rating reissued by DA Davidson in a report issued on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $16.00 target price on the stock, down from their prior target price of $47.00. DA Davidson's target price indicates a potential upside of 12.83% from the stock's current price.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on VITL. Zacks Research cut Vital Farms from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Vital Farms from $24.00 to $15.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on Vital Farms from $35.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 27th. TD Cowen downgraded Vital Farms from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $25.00 to $16.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Benchmark downgraded Vital Farms from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vital Farms presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $34.08.

Vital Farms Price Performance

VITL stock opened at $14.18 on Monday. Vital Farms has a 1 year low of $11.80 and a 1 year high of $53.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.16. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $15.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.10. The firm has a market cap of $607.61 million, a P/E ratio of 9.85 and a beta of 1.20.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.03). Vital Farms had a net margin of 8.73% and a return on equity of 20.69%. The company had revenue of $213.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $212.83 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.23 EPS. Vital Farms's quarterly revenue was up 28.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Vital Farms will post 0.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Matthew Ohayer sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.33, for a total value of $406,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 6,321,190 shares of the company's stock, valued at $128,509,792.70. This represents a 0.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Karl Khoury bought 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $18.45 per share, for a total transaction of $92,250.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 119,789 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,210,107.05. This trade represents a 4.36% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 21.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Vital Farms

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 22.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,845,714 shares of the company's stock valued at $90,892,000 after purchasing an additional 530,008 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 13.7% in the 4th quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,687,246 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,831,000 after purchasing an additional 324,725 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,047,955 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,412,000 after purchasing an additional 26,150 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,520,471 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,564,000 after purchasing an additional 142,790 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 64.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,293,788 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,324,000 after purchasing an additional 508,222 shares in the last quarter. 98.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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