American Century Companies Inc. Boosts Stake in Vital Farms, Inc. $VITL

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. significantly increased its stake in Vital Farms by 1,453.0% during Q1, owning 1,243,467 shares valued at approximately $37.9 million.
• Vital Farms reported a 25.4% increase in revenue year-over-year, reaching $184.77 million, and earnings per share of $0.36, exceeding analyst expectations.
• Numerous institutional investors, including Wellington Management and Lord Abbett & Co., have increased their holdings in Vital Farms, with institutional ownership now at 98.59% of the company.

American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Free Report) by 1,453.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,243,467 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,163,399 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned 2.79% of Vital Farms worth $37,888,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in VITL. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Vital Farms by 417.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,431,024 shares of the company's stock valued at $91,625,000 after buying an additional 1,961,550 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Farms during the 1st quarter valued at $17,633,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC raised its position in shares of Vital Farms by 64.6% during the 4th quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,058,753 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,904,000 after buying an additional 415,614 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in Vital Farms by 56.7% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 662,174 shares of the company's stock worth $24,958,000 after purchasing an additional 239,552 shares during the period. Finally, Anchor Capital Management Company LLC raised its position in Vital Farms by 79.6% in the 4th quarter. Anchor Capital Management Company LLC now owns 404,152 shares of the company's stock worth $15,232,000 after purchasing an additional 179,152 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.59% of the company's stock.

Vital Farms Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of VITL opened at $49.79 on Thursday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $39.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.46 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 2.48, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $27.91 and a 1-year high of $50.50.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $184.77 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $170.28 million. Vital Farms had a net margin of 7.84% and a return on equity of 18.40%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.36 EPS. Vital Farms has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Farms

In other Vital Farms news, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 16,700 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.11, for a total value of $770,037.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 702,476 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,391,168.36. The trade was a 2.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Stephanie Coon sold 10,005 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.15, for a total transaction of $461,730.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 45,779 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,112,700.85. This trade represents a 17.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 94,105 shares of company stock worth $3,645,398. Insiders own 21.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Vital Farms from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Lake Street Capital set a $60.00 price target on shares of Vital Farms and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Vital Farms in a report on Friday, August 8th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vital Farms presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $48.20.

About Vital Farms

Vital Farms, Inc, a food company, provides pasture-raised products in the United States. It offers shell eggs, butter, hard-boiled eggs, and liquid whole eggs. The company was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.

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