Nuveen LLC Makes New Investment in Vital Farms, Inc. $VITL

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Vital Farms, Inc., buying 578,697 shares valued at approximately $17.6 million, representing 1.30% of the company.
• Vital Farms reported a 25.4% year-over-year increase in quarterly revenue, reaching $184.77 million, and exceeded EPS estimates by $0.09.
• Analysts have raised their price targets for Vital Farms, with a consensus rating of "Buy"** and an average target price of $48.20.

Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 578,697 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,633,000. Nuveen LLC owned approximately 1.30% of Vital Farms as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VITL. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 46.9% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 17,414 shares of the company's stock valued at $656,000 after purchasing an additional 5,561 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Vital Farms by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 75,083 shares of the company's stock worth $2,830,000 after purchasing an additional 11,730 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Vital Farms by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 229,179 shares of the company's stock worth $8,638,000 after purchasing an additional 25,028 shares during the period. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Vital Farms by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,487 shares of the company's stock worth $131,000 after buying an additional 475 shares during the period. Finally, Guggenheim Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vital Farms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.59% of the company's stock.

Vital Farms Stock Performance

Shares of VITL traded up $0.75 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $50.94. The stock had a trading volume of 880,772 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,186,047. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.28 billion, a PE ratio of 45.48 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 2.48 and a quick ratio of 2.10. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $27.91 and a 12 month high of $51.55. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $39.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.35.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $184.77 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $170.28 million. Vital Farms had a return on equity of 18.40% and a net margin of 7.84%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 25.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.36 earnings per share. Vital Farms has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Analysts anticipate that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Farms

In other Vital Farms news, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 16,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.11, for a total transaction of $770,037.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 702,476 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,391,168.36. This represents a 2.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Thilo Wrede sold 1,200 shares of the business's 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 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 94,905 shares of company stock valued at $3,685,646. 21.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VITL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Lake Street Capital set a $60.00 price objective on Vital Farms and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on Vital Farms from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Vital Farms from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $48.20.

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.