Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) Trading Down 8.4% - Should You Sell?

Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 8.4% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $29.42 and last traded at $29.26. Approximately 829,387 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 15% from the average daily volume of 975,348 shares. The stock had previously closed at $31.94.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Vital Farms from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. DA Davidson dropped their price target on Vital Farms from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on Vital Farms in a report on Friday, December 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $52.00 price target on shares of Vital Farms in a report on Thursday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $43.71.

Vital Farms Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 3.24, a quick ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a market capitalization of $1.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.21 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $37.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.70.

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Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.08. Vital Farms had a return on equity of 22.29% and a net margin of 8.68%. The firm had revenue of $165.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $160.32 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Vital Farms

In other Vital Farms news, insider Joanne Bal sold 28,246 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.10, for a total value of $1,273,894.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 59,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,677,632.10. This trade represents a 32.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Kathryn Mckeon sold 12,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.08, for a total transaction of $517,584.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 46,203 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,944,222.24. This trade represents a 21.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 145,474 shares of company stock worth $6,171,500. 27.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vital Farms

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Nordea Investment Management AB acquired a new position in shares of Vital Farms during the fourth quarter worth about $2,765,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 38.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 266,398 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,343,000 after purchasing an additional 74,593 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vital Farms by 6.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 253,434 shares of the company's stock worth $8,888,000 after purchasing an additional 14,426 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Vital Farms by 10.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 372,583 shares of the company's stock worth $13,066,000 after purchasing an additional 34,412 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Vital Farms during the fourth quarter worth $699,000. Institutional investors own 98.59% 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.