Marshall Wace LLP Boosts Stake in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL)

Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Free Report) by 29.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 937,755 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 214,839 shares during the quarter. Marshall Wace LLP owned 2.22% of Vital Farms worth $43,859,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC purchased a new position in Vital Farms during the 4th quarter valued at about $720,000. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vital Farms in the 1st quarter worth approximately $656,000. Anchor Capital Management Company LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vital Farms during the first quarter valued at approximately $2,325,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 19.4% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 477,826 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,109,000 after buying an additional 77,710 shares during the period. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP raised its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 10.4% during the first quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 136,958 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,184,000 after acquiring an additional 12,851 shares in the last quarter. 98.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Farms

In other news, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 44,381 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total value of $1,939,893.51. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 427,839 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,700,842.69. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 24,000 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.58, for a total value of $949,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,266,777 shares in the company, valued at $287,619,033.66. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 44,381 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total transaction of $1,939,893.51. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 427,839 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,700,842.69. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 30.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vital Farms Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of Vital Farms stock traded down $0.91 during trading on Thursday, hitting $34.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,032,330 shares, compared to its average volume of 701,258. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $10.41 and a 52 week high of $48.41. The company has a market capitalization of $1.50 billion, a PE ratio of 40.96 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $33.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 3.03 and a current ratio of 3.50.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.20 by $0.16. Vital Farms had a net margin of 8.70% and a return on equity of 22.77%. The business had revenue of $147.39 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $138.41 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.15 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 38.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on VITL shares. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Vital Farms from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $44.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Vital Farms from $42.00 to $34.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $34.60.

Vital Farms 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.