Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in Vital Farms, Inc. $VITL

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. decreased its stake in Vital Farms, Inc. by 14.5%, owning 253,543 shares after selling 42,873 shares during the first quarter, which is valued at approximately $7.73 million.
• Vital Farms reported a 25.4% increase in revenue year-over-year for the latest quarter, with earnings per share of $0.36, surpassing the consensus estimate of $0.27.
• Insiders at Vital Farms have sold 103,901 shares of company stock recently, indicating a notable decrease in their ownership stakes.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. decreased its stake in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Free Report) by 14.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 253,543 shares of the company's stock after selling 42,873 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.57% of Vital Farms worth $7,725,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 53.2% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 23,177 shares of the company's stock worth $706,000 after purchasing an additional 8,049 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 8,421 shares of the company's stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 25.2% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 84,592 shares of the company's stock worth $3,188,000 after purchasing an additional 17,017 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vital Farms in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,114,000. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 9,407 shares of the company's stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 672 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.59% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on VITL shares. Mizuho lifted their target price on Vital Farms from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Lake Street Capital set a $60.00 target price on Vital Farms and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price objective on Vital Farms from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. DA Davidson upped their target price on Vital Farms from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Vital Farms in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $48.20.

Vital Farms Stock Performance

Vital Farms stock traded down $0.29 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $51.09. 952,879 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,232,397. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.28 billion, a PE ratio of 45.62 and a beta of 0.93. Vital Farms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $27.91 and a fifty-two week high of $53.13. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a current ratio of 2.48.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 18.40% and a net margin of 7.84%.Vital Farms's revenue for the quarter was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.36 earnings per share. Vital Farms has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 16,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.11, for a total transaction of $770,037.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 702,476 shares of the company's stock, valued at $32,391,168.36. This trade represents a 2.32% 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, CFO Thilo Wrede sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.97, for a total value of $46,764.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 56,187 shares in the company, valued at $2,189,607.39. This represents a 2.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 103,901 shares of company stock valued at $4,141,052 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 21.30% of the company's stock.

Vital Farms Profile

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.