Mission Produce (NASDAQ:AVO) Director Buys $790,683.75 in Stock

Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVO) Director Bruce Taylor bought 70,283 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $11.25 per share, for a total transaction of $790,683.75. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 855,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,628,222.50. The trade was a 8.95% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Mission Produce Stock Performance

Shares of AVO stock traded up $0.32 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $11.71. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,484,102 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,082,074. The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a PE ratio of 36.59 and a beta of 0.51. The business has a fifty day moving average of $12.40 and a 200-day moving average of $12.88. Mission Produce, Inc. has a 52 week low of $10.07 and a 52 week high of $15.53.

Mission Produce declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, June 8th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 13.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mission Produce

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AVO. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Mission Produce in the third quarter worth $29,000. Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new position in shares of Mission Produce during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Mission Produce by 87.1% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,589 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 2,136 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Mission Produce by 211.8% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,649 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 3,158 shares during the period. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its stake in shares of Mission Produce by 466.0% during the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 7,035 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 5,792 shares during the period. 63.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AVO. Weiss Ratings lowered Mission Produce from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Mission Produce to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. UBS Group set a $16.00 price objective on shares of Mission Produce in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Mission Produce from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mission Produce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $16.67.

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.