Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Sells 22,902 Shares of Medifast, Inc. (NYSE:MED)

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. trimmed its position in Medifast, Inc. (NYSE:MED) by 13.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 146,507 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 22,902 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. owned about 1.34% of Medifast worth $2,581,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its holdings in Medifast by 23.5% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 6,459 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $114,000 after acquiring an additional 1,227 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Medifast by 2,308.8% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,442 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 10,967 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Medifast by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 16,194 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $285,000 after purchasing an additional 2,127 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in Medifast by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 17,106 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $301,000 after buying an additional 674 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Medifast during the fourth quarter worth about $352,000. 95.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Medifast Trading Up 4.9%

Shares of Medifast stock opened at $13.37 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $13.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $15.70. The company has a market capitalization of $146.95 million, a PE ratio of 74.28 and a beta of 0.96. Medifast, Inc. has a 12 month low of $11.57 and a 12 month high of $26.53.

Medifast (NYSE:MED) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The specialty retailer reported ($0.11) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $115.73 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $114.85 million. Medifast had a return on equity of 10.64% and a net margin of 0.35%. Analysts predict that Medifast, Inc. will post 0.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MED. StockNews.com raised Medifast from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson decreased their price objective on shares of Medifast from $17.00 to $16.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th.

Medifast Company Profile

Medifast, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of weight loss, weight management, and healthy living products in the United States and the Asia-Pacific. It offers bars, puffs, cereal, crunchers, drinks, hearty choices, oatmeal, pancakes, pudding, soft serve, shakes, smoothies, soft bakes, and soups under the OPTAVIA, OPTAVIA ACTIVE, and Optimal Health brand names.