Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Hits New 52-Week High at $45.42

Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $45.42 and last traded at $45.40, with a volume of 40929 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $44.74.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on VITL shares. TheStreet raised Vital Farms from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. William Blair initiated coverage on Vital Farms in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Vital Farms from $19.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $28.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Vital Farms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $30.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.40.

Vital Farms Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 3.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a market capitalization of $1.89 billion, a PE ratio of 52.64 and a beta of 0.95. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.28.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.20. Vital Farms had a net margin of 7.48% and a return on equity of 19.58%. The firm had revenue of $147.93 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $139.87 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vital Farms

In related news, insider Joanne Bal sold 9,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.11, for a total transaction of $344,078.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 61,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,148,661.78. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Vital Farms news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.15, for a total value of $132,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,438,777 shares in the company, valued at approximately $246,595,457.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joanne Bal sold 9,800 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.11, for a total transaction of $344,078.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 61,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,148,661.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 201,623 shares of company stock worth $7,062,766. 30.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cetera Advisors LLC bought a new position in Vital Farms during the 1st quarter worth about $481,000. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Vital Farms during the first quarter valued at approximately $245,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in Vital Farms by 5.6% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 26,510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $617,000 after buying an additional 1,402 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Vital Farms by 30.0% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 14,422 shares of the company’s stock worth $334,000 after buying an additional 3,327 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Vital Farms during the first quarter worth $210,000. 98.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.