JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises Stock Holdings in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 266,977 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Vital Farms were worth $10,062,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Emerald Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 864,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,576,000 after acquiring an additional 157,883 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Vital Farms by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,236,848 shares of the company’s stock worth $84,307,000 after purchasing an additional 87,980 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Vital Farms by 46.9% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 17,414 shares of the company’s stock valued at $656,000 after purchasing an additional 5,561 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of Vital Farms during the 4th quarter valued at about $558,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Vital Farms by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 80,068 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,018,000 after buying an additional 6,803 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.59% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Monday, March 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $30.00 price target on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $52.00 price target on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Stifel Nicolaus raised Vital Farms from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $44.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Vital Farms from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their price target on Vital Farms from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.00.

Vital Farms Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VITL opened at $33.62 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $32.54 and its 200 day moving average is $35.60. The company has a market cap of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of 30.02 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 3.24 and a quick ratio of 2.81. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $24.52 and a 1 year high of $48.41.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $160.32 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vital Farms

In other Vital Farms news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.39, for a total value of $125,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,966,890 shares in the company, valued at $218,690,677.10. This trade represents a 0.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CMO Kathryn Mckeon sold 12,300 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.05, for a total value of $541,815.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 46,203 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,035,242.15. The trade was a 21.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 88,546 shares of company stock valued at $3,567,030. 27.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.