Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) shares gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $31.73, but opened at $32.86. Vital Farms shares last traded at $33.8490, with a volume of 1,151,754 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on VITL. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Vital Farms from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Needham & Company LLC assumed coverage on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Friday. They set a “buy” rating and a $45.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Vital Farms from $53.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Benchmark assumed coverage on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Vital Farms in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.64.

Vital Farms Trading Up 5.3%

The company has a quick ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The company’s 50-day moving average is $35.96 and its 200-day moving average is $38.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.29 and a beta of 1.06.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $198.94 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $191.35 million. Vital Farms had a net margin of 8.50% and a return on equity of 20.19%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 37.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.16 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Farms

In related news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.17, for a total transaction of $829,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 6,391,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $211,995,772.30. This trade represents a 0.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 9,667 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.39, for a total transaction of $429,118.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 666,109 shares in the company, valued at $29,568,578.51. The trade was a 1.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 81,367 shares of company stock valued at $3,035,512. 21.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Farms

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VITL. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Vital Farms by 36.2% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,929 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank grew its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 7.3% in the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 63,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,938,000 after buying an additional 4,300 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Farms in the 1st quarter valued at $17,633,000. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Vital Farms by 9.2% during the 1st quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 35,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,086,000 after acquiring an additional 3,007 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in Vital Farms by 27.5% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 145,137 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,422,000 after acquiring an additional 31,329 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.