Insider Selling: Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Insider Sells 145,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Matthew Ohayer, an insider at Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL), sold 145,000 shares of stock on September 2nd for a total of $7.54 million, reducing his ownership by 2.16%.
• Vital Farms recently reported quarterly earnings of $0.36 EPS, exceeding analyst expectations of $0.27 EPS, with revenue increasing 25.4% year-over-year.
• Hedge funds currently own 98.59% of Vital Farms' stock, with notable institutional investors such as Caitong International increasing their holdings dramatically during the first quarter.

Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) insider Matthew Ohayer sold 145,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.98, for a total transaction of $7,537,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 6,582,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $342,135,998.60. This trade represents a 2.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Matthew Ohayer also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, August 29th, Matthew Ohayer sold 100,000 shares of Vital Farms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.13, for a total transaction of $5,113,000.00.
• On Thursday, August 21st, Matthew Ohayer sold 4,200 shares of Vital Farms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.25, for a total transaction of $211,050.00.
• On Tuesday, August 19th, Matthew Ohayer sold 800 shares of Vital Farms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.31, for a total transaction of $40,248.00.
• On Wednesday, July 23rd, Matthew Ohayer sold 5,000 shares of Vital Farms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.34, for a total transaction of $201,700.00.
• On Tuesday, July 1st, Matthew Ohayer sold 30,000 shares of Vital Farms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.17, for a total transaction of $1,175,100.00.
• On Tuesday, June 17th, Matthew Ohayer sold 5,000 shares of Vital Farms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.25, for a total value of $161,250.00.
• On Friday, June 13th, Matthew Ohayer sold 25,000 shares of Vital Farms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.62, for a total value of $790,500.00.

Vital Farms Stock Down 0.9%

NASDAQ VITL traded down $0.48 during trading on Friday, reaching $51.12. 556,213 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,071,230. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $42.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $36.45. The stock has a market cap of $2.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.64 and a beta of 0.93. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $27.91 and a 1 year high of $53.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a current ratio of 2.48.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $170.28 million. Vital Farms had a return on equity of 18.40% and a net margin of 7.84%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 25.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.36 EPS. Vital Farms has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on VITL. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Lake Street Capital set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vital Farms and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their target price on Vital Farms from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $49.80.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Farms

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VITL. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Vital Farms by 17.8% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,863,872 shares of the company's stock worth $87,262,000 after acquiring an additional 432,848 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 80.2% during the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,074,803 shares of the company's stock worth $79,921,000 after purchasing an additional 923,507 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 35.7% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,687,869 shares of the company's stock worth $65,017,000 after purchasing an additional 444,402 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 97.4% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,234,008 shares of the company's stock worth $47,534,000 after purchasing an additional 608,723 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Vital Farms by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,209,564 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,855,000 after buying an additional 37,614 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.59% of the company's stock.

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.