DA Davidson Has Lowered Expectations for Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Stock Price

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) had its price target dropped by analysts at DA Davidson from $44.00 to $42.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. DA Davidson’s target price indicates a potential upside of 33.29% from the company’s previous close.

VITL has been the subject of a number of other reports. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Vital Farms from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $44.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Craig Hallum began coverage on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 price objective on shares of Vital Farms in a research report on Thursday. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Vital Farms from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $43.71.

Vital Farms Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VITL traded up $2.19 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $31.51. 328,691 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 977,740. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.81 and a current ratio of 3.24. Vital Farms has a 1 year low of $20.87 and a 1 year high of $48.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.15 and a beta of 0.95. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $37.64 and a 200 day moving average of $35.70.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $165.99 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $160.32 million. Vital Farms had a return on equity of 22.29% and a net margin of 8.68%. On average, analysts forecast that Vital Farms will post 1.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vital Farms

In related news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 24,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.19, for a total transaction of $916,560.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,038,890 shares in the company, valued at approximately $268,815,209.10. This represents a 0.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joanne Bal sold 28,246 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.10, for a total value of $1,273,894.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 59,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,677,632.10. The trade was a 32.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 145,474 shares of company stock valued at $6,171,500. Insiders own 27.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Farms

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VITL. Nordea Investment Management AB purchased a new position in shares of Vital Farms in the 4th quarter valued at $2,765,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 38.9% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 266,398 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,343,000 after purchasing an additional 74,593 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Vital Farms by 6.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 253,434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,888,000 after buying an additional 14,426 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 372,583 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,066,000 after buying an additional 34,412 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Vital Farms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $699,000. 98.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.