Morgan Stanley Cuts Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Price Target to $39.00

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) had its price objective decreased by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from $40.00 to $39.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price target suggests a potential upside of 16.45% from the company's previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $52.00 price target on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on Vital Farms in a report on Friday, December 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their price objective on Vital Farms from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $43.13.

Vital Farms Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ VITL traded up $0.43 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $33.49. 607,311 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,039,289. The stock has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.90 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $32.27 and a 200 day moving average of $35.51. Vital Farms has a 1 year low of $24.87 and a 1 year high of $48.41. The company has a quick ratio of 2.81, a current ratio of 3.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.08. Vital Farms had a return on equity of 22.29% and a net margin of 8.68%. The firm had revenue of $165.99 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $160.32 million. On average, research analysts expect that Vital Farms will post 1.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vital Farms

In related news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.46, for a total transaction of $589,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,970,890 shares in the company, valued at $205,362,419.40. The trade was a 0.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 45,124 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.69, for a total transaction of $1,520,227.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 703,736 shares in the company, valued at $23,708,865.84. This trade represents a 6.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 69,124 shares of company stock worth $2,234,988. Corporate insiders own 27.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Vital Farms

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB acquired a new position in shares of Vital Farms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,765,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Vital Farms by 38.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 266,398 shares of the company's stock worth $9,343,000 after purchasing an additional 74,593 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Vital Farms in the 4th quarter valued at about $699,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Vital Farms by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 372,583 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,066,000 after purchasing an additional 34,412 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 57.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 95,444 shares of the company's stock worth $3,347,000 after purchasing an additional 34,758 shares during the last quarter. 98.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.