Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL)

Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Free Report) by 60.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 84,000 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 31,500 shares during the quarter. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. owned about 0.19% of Vital Farms worth $2,559,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 152.1% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 895 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the period. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Vital Farms during the 4th quarter valued at about $59,000. CWM LLC increased its position in Vital Farms by 43.2% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,154 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,487 shares of the company's stock valued at $131,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares during the period. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in shares of Vital Farms in the first quarter valued at about $112,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.59% of the company's stock.

Vital Farms Price Performance

VITL stock traded up $0.36 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $37.71. 31,082 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 971,596. The company has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.64 and a beta of 0.94. The stock's 50 day moving average is $35.14 and its 200 day moving average is $35.28. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $27.91 and a 12-month high of $45.72. 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 (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $162.19 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.43 million. Vital Farms had a return on equity of 19.53% and a net margin of 8.26%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insider Activity at Vital Farms

In related news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was 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. This trade represents a 0.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Thilo Wrede sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.93, for a total value of $38,316.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 57,117 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,823,745.81. This represents a 2.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 86,400 shares of company stock worth $2,996,250. Company insiders own 21.30% of the company's stock.

Vital Farms Company 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.

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