HighTower Advisors LLC Decreases Position in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL)

HighTower Advisors LLC decreased its stake in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) by 28.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 140,299 shares of the company’s stock after selling 55,191 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Vital Farms were worth $4,921,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in Vital Farms during the third quarter valued at $35,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Vital Farms during the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,000. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Vital Farms by 162.9% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,057 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 655 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its position in Vital Farms by 180.4% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,290 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares during the period. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC lifted its stake in Vital Farms by 66.7% in the second quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.59% of the company’s stock.

Vital Farms Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VITL opened at $37.57 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.81, a current ratio of 3.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The business’s 50 day moving average is $34.74 and its 200 day moving average is $36.47. The stock has a market cap of $1.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.54 and a beta of 0.93. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $14.14 and a 52-week high of $48.41.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.02. Vital Farms had a return on equity of 22.29% and a net margin of 8.68%. The firm had revenue of $145.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $145.27 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.10 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VITL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Vital Farms from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Vital Farms from $46.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their target price on Vital Farms from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vital Farms currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $39.20.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 44,653 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.07, for a total value of $1,789,245.71. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 537,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,531,574.43. This trade represents a 7.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 24,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.09, for a total value of $938,160.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,194,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $281,243,832.93. This trade represents a 0.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 27.60% of the company’s stock.

Vital Farms Company Profile

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.