Mission Produce (NASDAQ:AVO) Sets New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVO) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $14.31 and last traded at $14.33, with a volume of 129188 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $13.93.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on AVO shares. Lake Street Capital reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Mission Produce in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Mission Produce in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Mission Produce from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Three research 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 has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $17.00.

Mission Produce Trading Up 3.3%

The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.65 and a beta of 0.62. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.34.

Mission Produce (NASDAQ:AVO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.01). Mission Produce had a return on equity of 8.18% and a net margin of 2.71%.The company had revenue of $319.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $301.60 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Mission Produce, Inc. will post 0.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mission Produce

In related news, major shareholder Holdings Venture Globalharvest acquired 985,704 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $11.76 per share, with a total value of $11,591,879.04. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 8,837,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $103,926,483.36. This represents a 12.55% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In the last quarter, insiders have acquired 2,141,484 shares of company stock valued at $25,996,353. 35.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVO. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Mission Produce by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,689,681 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,200,000 after purchasing an additional 118,813 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Mission Produce by 11.7% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,183,208 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,869,000 after buying an additional 123,678 shares in the last quarter. Platform Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Mission Produce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $12,130,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Mission Produce by 28.6% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 861,139 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,093,000 after buying an additional 191,405 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Mission Produce by 26.9% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 510,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,920,000 after acquiring an additional 108,124 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.57% of the company’s stock.

About Mission Produce

Mission Produce, Inc is a leading global supplier, packer and distributor of fresh avocados, serving retail, foodservice and industrial customers. The company manages a vertically integrated supply chain that spans sourcing, post-harvest handling, packing and ripening. Through proprietary ripening technologies and cold-chain logistics, Mission Produce delivers consistent quality and extended shelf life for its avocado offerings.

Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Oxnard, California, Mission Produce grew from a regional packing operation into a publicly traded company listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker AVO.