American Century Companies Inc. Acquires 184,639 Shares of Mission Produce, Inc. $AVO

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Mission Produce, Inc. by 38.1%, owning 669,734 shares valued at approximately $7.02 million at the end of the first quarter.
• Mission Produce reported a quarterly earnings of $0.12 EPS, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.03, with revenues of $380.3 million for the quarter, up 27.8% year-over-year.
• As of the latest reports, institutional investors hold 63.57% of Mission Produce's stock, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.

American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVO - Free Report) by 38.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 669,734 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 184,639 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.94% of Mission Produce worth $7,019,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AVO. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in Mission Produce by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 40,560 shares of the company's stock worth $583,000 after purchasing an additional 5,676 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Mission Produce by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 96,888 shares of the company's stock worth $1,392,000 after purchasing an additional 1,123 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Mission Produce in the 4th quarter valued at about $803,000. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Mission Produce by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 74,785 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,075,000 after acquiring an additional 7,693 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Mission Produce by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,787,778 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,691,000 after acquiring an additional 257,344 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.57% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Zacks Research cut Mission Produce from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $15.50.

Mission Produce Stock Down 0.6%

Mission Produce stock traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $12.43. The company had a trading volume of 312,045 shares, compared to its average volume of 228,345. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $12.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.35. Mission Produce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $9.56 and a 12 month high of $15.25. The company has a market capitalization of $877.81 million, a PE ratio of 24.86 and a beta of 0.57.

Mission Produce (NASDAQ:AVO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, June 5th. The company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.09. Mission Produce had a return on equity of 7.82% and a net margin of 2.63%.The business had revenue of $380.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $296.15 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.14 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 27.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mission Produce, Inc. will post 0.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mission Produce news, CFO Bryan E. Giles sold 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.43, for a total value of $40,005.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 131,062 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,498,038.66. The trade was a 2.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 35.41% of the company's stock.

Mission Produce Company Profile

Mission Produce, Inc engages in the sourcing, farming, packaging, marketing, and distribution of avocados, mangoes, and blueberries to food retailers, distributors, and foodservice customers in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments, Marketing and Distribution; International Farming; and Blueberries.