Medifast (NYSE:MED) Stock Lifted to Strong-Buy by Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Medifast (NYSE:MED) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Tuesday,Zacks reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings upgraded Medifast from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.00.

Medifast Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of Medifast stock opened at $11.84 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $132.37 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.08 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $11.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $11.46. Medifast has a 52 week low of $9.22 and a 52 week high of $13.58.

Medifast (NYSE:MED) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The specialty retailer reported ($0.28) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.65) by $0.37. The firm had revenue of $76.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.70 million. Medifast had a negative return on equity of 6.69% and a negative net margin of 8.08%. Medifast has set its FY 2026 guidance at -1.750–0.250 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at -0.650–0.150 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Medifast will post -1.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Medifast

In other news, Director Parsa Kiai acquired 43,150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $12.26 per share, for a total transaction of $529,019.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 707,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,673,851.92. This trade represents a 6.50% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel R. Chard sold 9,544 shares of Medifast stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.73, for a total value of $111,951.12. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 130,609 shares in the company, valued at $1,532,043.57. This trade represents a 6.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 119,966 shares of company stock worth $1,423,576. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Medifast

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MED. State of Wyoming grew its holdings in shares of Medifast by 19.8% in the first quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 6,646 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 1,097 shares in the last quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Medifast during the second quarter valued at $75,000. Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Medifast during the second quarter valued at $114,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in Medifast during the second quarter valued at $214,000. Finally, Chico Wealth RIA bought a new position in Medifast during the second quarter valued at $223,000. 95.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Medifast

Medifast, Inc is a health and wellness company that provides weight-management and healthy-living products and services. Its primary brand, OPTAVIA, offers meal replacements, snacks, supplements and other nutrition products designed to support structured weight-management programs.

The company’s programs combine nutrition products with guidance from independent OPTAVIA Coaches. These coaches provide accountability, support and lifestyle guidance intended to help clients develop healthier eating and activity habits.

Medifast was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland.