Medifast (NYSE:MED) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at Zacks Research

Medifast (NYSE:MED) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Medifast from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Medifast has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $12.00.

Medifast Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of MED opened at $12.89 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.38. Medifast has a 52 week low of $9.22 and a 52 week high of $13.63. The stock has a market cap of $144.07 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.49 and a beta of 0.65.

Medifast (NYSE:MED) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 26th. The specialty retailer reported ($0.19) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.35) by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $72.05 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $71.30 million. Medifast had a negative return on equity of 6.90% and a negative net margin of 13.64%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Medifast will post -0.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Medifast

In other Medifast news, Director Daniel R. Chard sold 9,545 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.98, for a total value of $114,349.10. Following the sale, the director owned 140,153 shares in the company, valued at $1,679,032.94. The trade was a 6.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Parsa Kiai acquired 43,150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $12.26 per share, with a total value of $529,019.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 707,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,673,851.92. The trade was a 6.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased 126,184 shares of company stock valued at $1,500,207 over the last ninety days. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Medifast

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MED. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Medifast during the second quarter valued at approximately $3,920,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Medifast by 10.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 361,762 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,686,000 after acquiring an additional 35,522 shares during the last quarter. Commons Capital LLC increased its stake in Medifast by 23.0% in the 3rd quarter. Commons Capital LLC now owns 184,432 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,125,000 after acquiring an additional 34,516 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Medifast during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $924,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Medifast by 59.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 71,584 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $729,000 after acquiring an additional 26,811 shares in the last quarter. 95.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Medifast

Medifast, Inc. is a health and wellness company focused on weight management and healthy living. Its products and programs are marketed primarily under the OPTAVIA brand. OPTAVIA offers structured plans that combine portion-controlled meal replacements and other nutrition products with guidance from independent coaches. The company’s approach emphasizes nutrition, behavior changes and ongoing support. Founded in 1980, Medifast serves customers primarily in the United States. Its business centers on selling products and connecting customers with coaches who provide support as they follow the company’s programs.