Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Director Denny Marie Post Buys 3,000 Shares of Stock

Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) Director Denny Marie Post bought 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $8.23 per share, for a total transaction of $24,690.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 19,312 shares in the company, valued at approximately $158,937.76. The trade was a 18.39% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Vital Farms Stock Performance

Shares of VITL opened at $8.48 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $13.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $24.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $7.95 and a 12 month high of $53.13. The company has a market cap of $363.37 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.15 and a beta of 1.20.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.12). Vital Farms had a return on equity of 14.47% and a net margin of 6.10%.The business had revenue of $187.16 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $182.40 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.37 EPS. Vital Farms’s quarterly revenue was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Vital Farms, Inc. will post -0.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Farms

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of VITL. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in Vital Farms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Vital Farms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 4,382.6% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 1,008 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 225.6% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 1,006 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Vital Farms during the third quarter valued at approximately $55,000. 98.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on VITL. Craig Hallum lowered shares of Vital Farms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $10.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $20.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 11th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $16.00 price target (down from $47.00) on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “hold” rating and issued a $10.00 price target (down from $34.00) on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded Vital Farms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $25.00 to $16.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $27.33.

Key Headlines Impacting Vital Farms

Here are the key news stories impacting Vital Farms this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Several law firms issued reminders about the upcoming May 26 lead-plaintiff deadline in the Vital Farms securities class action, keeping legal risk in focus for shareholders.
• Negative Sentiment: The repeated class-action notices may pressure Vital Farms shares by highlighting alleged securities-law violations and extending uncertainty around the company’s outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: Investor attention remains on the company’s recent earnings miss, which likely compounds the negative reaction to the litigation headlines.

About Vital Farms

Vital Farms, traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol VITL, is a U.S.-based food company specializing in pasture-raised egg and dairy products. The company partners with a network of family farms across the United States to produce eggs, butter and related items under a certified humane, pasture-centric farming model. Vital Farms’ supply chain emphasizes animal welfare, environmental stewardship and transparent sourcing, appealing to consumers seeking ethically produced, high-quality ingredients.

Founded in 2007 and headquartered in Austin, Texas, Vital Farms began by marketing pasture-raised eggs to health- and ethically minded shoppers.