Vital Farms, Inc. $VITL Shares Bought by Van Berkom & Associates Inc.

Key Points

• Van Berkom & Associates sharply increased its Vital Farms stake by 1,998.7% in the first quarter, ending with 2.26 million shares worth about $31.9 million. Institutional investors now own 98.59% of the company.
• Vital Farms reported mixed quarterly results, with revenue of $187.16 million topping expectations but EPS of -$0.03 missing estimates. Revenue still rose 15.4% year over year.
• Analysts have turned more cautious on the stock, with several firms downgrading Vital Farms and the consensus rating now sitting at Hold. The average price target is $24.08, while shares recently traded around $13.55.

Van Berkom & Associates Inc. increased its stake in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Free Report) by 1,998.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,261,533 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,153,775 shares during the period. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. owned approximately 5.28% of Vital Farms worth $31,933,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 46.8% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,405,032 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,836,000 after purchasing an additional 447,728 shares in the last quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel grew its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 92.6% in the 1st quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 76,433 shares of the company's stock worth $1,079,000 after purchasing an additional 36,758 shares during the last quarter. Watershed Asset Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Vital Farms during the first quarter worth $449,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Vital Farms by 53.7% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 5,732 shares of the company's stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 2,002 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in Vital Farms by 11.4% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 14,102 shares of the company's stock valued at $199,000 after acquiring an additional 1,438 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.59% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on VITL shares. Stifel Nicolaus restated a "hold" rating and set a $10.00 price target (down from $34.00) on shares of Vital Farms in a report on Friday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $10.00 price objective on Vital Farms in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Telsey Advisory Group cut Vital Farms from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and set a $11.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Vital Farms from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded Vital Farms from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $25.00 to $16.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vital Farms currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $24.08.

Vital Farms Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VITL opened at $13.55 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $580.62 million, a PE ratio of 13.03 and a beta of 1.07. Vital Farms, Inc. has a one year low of $7.95 and a one year high of $53.13. The company's 50-day moving average price is $10.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.77 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). The business had revenue of $187.16 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $182.40 million. Vital Farms had a net margin of 6.10% and a return on equity of 14.47%. Vital Farms's quarterly revenue was up 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.37 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Vital Farms, Inc. will post -0.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Farms

In other Vital Farms news, Director Glenda J. Flanagan acquired 6,100 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $8.33 per share, with a total value of $50,813.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 37,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at $312,358.34. This represents a 19.43% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Stephanie Coon bought 5,895 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $8.42 per share, with a total value of $49,635.90. Following the purchase, the insider owned 62,314 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $524,683.88. This represents a 10.45% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased a total of 38,700 shares of company stock valued at $320,864 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company's stock.

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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