Skylands Capital LLC Purchases Shares of 137,600 Vital Farms, Inc. $VITL

Skylands Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 137,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,943,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VITL. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Vital Farms in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,442,000. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP raised its stake in Vital Farms by 131.7% during the 3rd quarter. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP now owns 993,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,876,000 after buying an additional 564,711 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Vital Farms by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,520,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,564,000 after acquiring an additional 142,790 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its holdings in Vital Farms by 554.1% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 95,258 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,920,000 after acquiring an additional 80,694 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Impax Asset Management Group plc boosted its holdings in Vital Farms by 119.4% in the fourth quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 238,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,631,000 after acquiring an additional 130,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.59% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Glenda J. Flanagan acquired 6,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $8.33 per share, with a total value of $50,813.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 37,498 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $312,358.34. The trade was a 19.43% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph Michael Holland bought 12,484 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $8.00 per share, with a total value of $99,872.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 38,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $305,200. This represents a 48.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders acquired 38,700 shares of company stock valued at $320,864. 3.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VITL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Craig Hallum downgraded Vital Farms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $10.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, May 8th. Zacks Research cut Vital Farms from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Vital Farms from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $10.00 price target on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus restated a “hold” rating and set a $10.00 price objective (down from $34.00) on shares of Vital Farms in a report on Friday, May 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.33.

Vital Farms Price Performance

VITL stock opened at $11.19 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.77. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.56. The company has a market capitalization of $479.49 million, a P/E ratio of 10.76 and a beta of 1.09. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $7.95 and a 52-week high of $53.13.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.03) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.12). Vital Farms had a return on equity of 14.47% and a net margin of 6.10%.The company had revenue of $187.16 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $182.40 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.37 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Vital Farms, Inc. will post -0.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Vital Farms

Vital Farms, traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol VITL, is a U.S.-based food company specializing in pasture-raised egg and dairy products. The company partners with a network of family farms across the United States to produce eggs, butter and related items under a certified humane, pasture-centric farming model. Vital Farms’ supply chain emphasizes animal welfare, environmental stewardship and transparent sourcing, appealing to consumers seeking ethically produced, high-quality ingredients.

Founded in 2007 and headquartered in Austin, Texas, Vital Farms began by marketing pasture-raised eggs to health- and ethically minded shoppers.