Brokerages Set Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) PT at $44.63

Shares of Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Buy" from the nine analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $44.63.

VITL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. DA Davidson reduced 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. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Vital Farms from $40.00 to $39.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $52.00 target price on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Monday, May 5th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Vital Farms in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised Vital Farms from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $44.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th.

Vital Farms Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of VITL stock traded down $0.61 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $30.69. 688,658 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,028,978. Vital Farms has a fifty-two week low of $27.91 and a fifty-two week high of $48.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.81 and a current ratio of 3.24. The company has a market capitalization of $1.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.40 and a beta of 0.89. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $33.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.10.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.11. Vital Farms had a net margin of 8.68% and a return on equity of 22.29%. The business had revenue of $162.19 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $164.43 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.43 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Vital Farms will post 1.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 24,000 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.68, for a total value of $784,320.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 6,942,890 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $226,893,645.20. This trade represents a 0.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 45,124 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.69, for a total value 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 represents a 6.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 93,124 shares of company stock valued at $3,019,308 over the last three months. Company insiders own 21.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Farms

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VITL. Barclays PLC increased its stake in Vital Farms by 57.3% in 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 in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management increased its stake in Vital Farms by 66.2% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 11,800 shares of the company's stock worth $445,000 after purchasing an additional 4,700 shares in the last quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Vital Farms in the 4th quarter worth about $199,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Vital Farms by 112.8% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 5,579 shares of the company's stock worth $210,000 after purchasing an additional 2,957 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. purchased a new position in Vital Farms in the 4th quarter worth about $298,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.59% 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.