Vital Farms, Inc. $VITL Shares Sold by Wasatch Advisors LP

Wasatch Advisors LP trimmed its holdings in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) by 28.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,933,119 shares of the company’s stock after selling 754,127 shares during the quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP’s holdings in Vital Farms were worth $27,296,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VITL. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Vital Farms by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 34,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,088,000 after acquiring an additional 479 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 495 shares in the last quarter. Clean Yield Group grew its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 65,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,089,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 629 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 35,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,138,000 after purchasing an additional 754 shares in the last quarter. 98.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Peter Nicholas Pappas purchased 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $8.51 per share, for a total transaction of $29,785.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 85,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $724,788.19. This trade represents a 4.29% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Glenda J. Flanagan purchased 6,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $8.33 per share, for a total transaction of $50,813.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 37,498 shares in the company, valued at $312,358.34. This represents a 19.43% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have acquired 38,700 shares of company stock valued at $320,864. Insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on VITL shares. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $10.00 price objective (down from $34.00) on shares of Vital Farms in a report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Vital Farms from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Vital Farms from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Vital Farms from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lowered shares of Vital Farms from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $11.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.33.

Vital Farms Trading Up 4.8%

Vital Farms stock opened at $11.19 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.77. The firm has a market cap of $479.49 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.76 and a beta of 1.09. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $7.95 and a 1 year high of $53.13. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $10.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.56.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.12). Vital Farms had a net margin of 6.10% and a return on equity of 14.47%. The company had revenue of $187.16 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $182.40 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.37 EPS. Vital Farms’s quarterly revenue was up 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Vital Farms, Inc. will post -0.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vital Farms Company Profile

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.