Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Receives Buy Rating from Needham & Company LLC

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by equities research analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $45.00 price target on the stock. Needham & Company LLC’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 59.97% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on VITL. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Vital Farms from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. DA Davidson set a $47.00 target price on Vital Farms and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Vital Farms from $48.00 to $45.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Vital Farms has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.91.

Vital Farms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VITL opened at $28.13 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.26 billion, a PE ratio of 21.31 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $31.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.85. Vital Farms has a 1-year low of $26.65 and a 1-year high of $53.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.65, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Farms

In related news, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 16,734 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.05, for a total transaction of $586,526.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 649,684 shares in the company, valued at $22,771,424.20. The trade was a 2.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 25,000 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.85, for a total value of $771,250.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 6,361,190 shares in the company, valued at $196,242,711.50. The trade was a 0.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 101,734 shares of company stock worth $3,350,177. 21.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Farms

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 80.2% in the 2nd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,074,803 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,921,000 after purchasing an additional 923,507 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 97.4% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,234,008 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,534,000 after purchasing an additional 608,723 shares in the last quarter. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 131.7% during the 3rd quarter. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP now owns 993,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,876,000 after buying an additional 564,711 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Vital Farms by 22.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,845,714 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,892,000 after buying an additional 530,008 shares during the period. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 79.4% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,173,263 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,474,000 after acquiring an additional 519,369 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.59% of the company’s stock.

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.