Granahan Investment Management LLC Takes $6.92 Million Position in Vital Farms, Inc. $VITL

Granahan Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 216,551 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,917,000. Granahan Investment Management LLC owned about 0.48% of Vital Farms as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Vital Farms by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 18,024 shares of the company's stock valued at $575,000 after buying an additional 1,144 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL raised its position in shares of Vital Farms by 181.6% during the fourth quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 57,396 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,833,000 after buying an additional 37,013 shares during the last quarter. Needham Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Vital Farms by 31.1% during the fourth quarter. Needham Investment Management LLC now owns 685,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,879,000 after buying an additional 162,500 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC raised its position in shares of Vital Farms by 350.3% during the fourth quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 201,232 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,427,000 after buying an additional 156,547 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC raised its position in shares of Vital Farms by 34.9% during the fourth quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 44,120 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,409,000 after buying an additional 11,420 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.59% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on VITL shares. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Vital Farms from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $20.00 to $13.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Vital Farms from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Benchmark lowered shares of Vital Farms from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vital Farms from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $27.33.

Vital Farms Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VITL opened at $10.70 on Wednesday. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $7.95 and a 12-month high of $53.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $458.50 million, a PE ratio of 10.29 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $11.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.67.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.12). Vital Farms had a return on equity of 14.47% and a net margin of 6.10%.The business had revenue of $187.16 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $182.40 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.37 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Vital Farms, Inc. will post -0.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Farms

In other Vital Farms news, Director Glenda J. Flanagan purchased 6,100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $8.33 per share, with a total value of $50,813.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 37,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $312,358.34. This trade represents a 19.43% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph Michael Holland purchased 12,484 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $8.00 per share, with a total value of $99,872.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 38,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $305,200. This represents a 48.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders bought 38,700 shares of company stock worth $320,864. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Vital Farms Company Profile

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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