Emerald Advisers LLC Has $29.81 Million Stake in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL)

Emerald Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Free Report) by 13.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 978,197 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 113,874 shares during the quarter. Vital Farms accounts for about 1.3% of Emerald Advisers LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Emerald Advisers LLC owned approximately 2.20% of Vital Farms worth $29,806,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its position in Vital Farms by 152.1% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 895 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its position in Vital Farms by 160.3% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,416 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 872 shares in the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Vital Farms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new position in Vital Farms during the 1st quarter worth approximately $112,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. grew its position in Vital Farms by 10,241.4% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,999 shares of the company's stock worth $113,000 after purchasing an additional 2,970 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.59% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VITL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $40.00 to $39.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Vital Farms to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $52.00 target price on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $45.00 target price for the company. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vital Farms has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.67.

Vital Farms Stock Down 2.6%

Shares of VITL stock traded down $0.99 on Wednesday, hitting $36.80. The company's stock had a trading volume of 539,604 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,025,967. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 3.35 and a quick ratio of 2.91. Vital Farms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $27.91 and a fifty-two week high of $45.72. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $35.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.86 and a beta of 0.94.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.11. Vital Farms had a net margin of 8.26% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The business had revenue of $162.19 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.43 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.43 EPS. Vital Farms's quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Farms

In related news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 30,000 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.17, for a total value of $1,175,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 6,858,890 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $268,662,721.30. The trade was a 0.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Thilo Wrede sold 1,200 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction on Friday, July 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.97, for a total transaction of $46,764.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 56,187 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,189,607.39. The trade was a 2.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 86,400 shares of company stock valued at $2,996,250. 21.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.