Van ECK Associates Corp Raises Position in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL)

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) by 112.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,579 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,957 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Vital Farms were worth $210,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Vital Farms in the 4th quarter worth $199,000. Spire Wealth Management raised its position in Vital Farms by 66.2% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 11,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $445,000 after purchasing an additional 4,700 shares during the period. Lifestyle Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Vital Farms by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Lifestyle Asset Management Inc. now owns 10,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $390,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares during the period. Dakota Wealth Management raised its position in Vital Farms by 26.8% in the 4th quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 7,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $273,000 after purchasing an additional 1,534 shares during the period. Finally, Foresight Group Ltd Liability Partnership raised its position in Vital Farms by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Foresight Group Ltd Liability Partnership now owns 18,286 shares of the company’s stock worth $679,000 after purchasing an additional 2,621 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.59% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Joanne Bal sold 28,246 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.10, for a total transaction of $1,273,894.60. Following the sale, the insider now owns 59,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,677,632.10. The trade was a 32.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 44,728 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 613,797 shares in the company, valued at $23,115,595.02. The trade was a 6.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 190,202 shares of company stock valued at $7,855,957. Corporate insiders own 27.60% of the company’s stock.

Vital Farms Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of VITL opened at $34.90 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $39.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.16 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 3.24, a quick ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $16.18 and a 1-year high of $48.41.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on VITL shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $34.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $52.00 price objective on shares of Vital Farms in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Craig Hallum started coverage on shares of Vital Farms in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.57.

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.