Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) Short Interest Down 24.0% in December

Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,440,000 shares, a decline of 24.0% from the November 30th total of 9,790,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,170,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.4 days. Currently, 23.2% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on VITL. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Vital Farms from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Vital Farms from $46.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Vital Farms from $44.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $41.00.

Vital Farms Price Performance

Shares of VITL opened at $37.01 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.04 and a beta of 0.93. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $34.66 and its 200-day moving average is $36.18. Vital Farms has a one year low of $14.16 and a one year high of $48.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.81 and a current ratio of 3.24.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $145.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $145.27 million. Vital Farms had a net margin of 8.68% and a return on equity of 22.29%. Vital Farms’s revenue was up 31.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.10 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Vital Farms will post 1.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Vital Farms

In related news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 24,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.19, for a total value of $916,560.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,038,890 shares in the company, valued at approximately $268,815,209.10. This trade represents a 0.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 44,728 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.66, for a total transaction of $1,684,456.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 613,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,115,595.02. This represents a 6.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 137,381 shares of company stock worth $5,328,422. 27.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vital Farms

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new position in shares of Vital Farms in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Quarry LP raised its holdings in Vital Farms by 180.4% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,290 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 830 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC lifted its stake in Vital Farms by 66.7% during the second quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vital Farms in the second quarter worth about $97,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in shares of Vital Farms in the second quarter worth approximately $168,000. 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.