Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Hits New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Vital Farms' stock has reached a new 52-week high, trading at $47.85, fueled by strong demand and favorable analyst ratings.
• Analysts have provided various price targets for the stock, with the highest at $60.00 from Lake Street Capital, while the average target price stands at $48.20.
• The company reported a 25.4% year-over-year revenue increase in its latest quarterly earnings, with earnings per share exceeding analysts' expectations at $0.36.

Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $47.85 and last traded at $47.74, with a volume of 1097269 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.21.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VITL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $40.00 to $39.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Lake Street Capital set a $60.00 price target on shares of Vital Farms and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Vital Farms in a report on Friday, August 8th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $48.20.

Vital Farms Stock Performance

The company's 50-day moving average price is $38.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.09. The firm has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.63 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a quick ratio of 2.10, a current ratio of 2.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

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, beating 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 net margin of 7.84% and a return on equity of 18.40%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.36 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Farms

In related news, CFO Thilo Wrede sold 1,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.97, for a total transaction of $46,764.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 56,187 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,189,607.39. The trade was a 2.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.17, for a total transaction of $1,175,100.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 6,858,890 shares in the company, valued at $268,662,721.30. The trade was a 0.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 94,105 shares of company stock valued at $3,645,398. 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 the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Vital Farms by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 75,420 shares of the company's stock worth $2,298,000 after buying an additional 337 shares during the period. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Vital Farms by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,487 shares of the company's stock valued at $131,000 after buying an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in shares of Vital Farms by 18.9% in the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,153 shares of the company's stock valued at $121,000 after buying an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in Vital Farms by 36.2% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,929 shares of the company's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp boosted its stake in Vital Farms by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 8,117 shares of the company's stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 518 shares during the period. 98.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.