Village Super Market (NASDAQ:VLGEA) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Village Super Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:VLGEA) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $45.24 and last traded at $45.1550, with a volume of 17668 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $44.19.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Village Super Market from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Village Super Market from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Village Super Market has an average rating of “Strong Buy”.

Village Super Market Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $666.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.82 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $42.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.10.

Village Super Market (NASDAQ:VLGEA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 4th. The company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter. Village Super Market had a return on equity of 11.52% and a net margin of 2.37%.The business had revenue of $640.96 million during the quarter.

Village Super Market Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Village Super Market’s payout ratio is currently 26.18%.

Insider Transactions at Village Super Market

In other news, EVP John Sumas sold 12,703 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.30, for a total transaction of $524,633.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 102,938 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,251,339.40. The trade was a 10.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John James Sumas sold 12,702 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.16, for a total value of $548,218.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 36,050 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,555,918. This represents a 26.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 33,405 shares of company stock valued at $1,423,892. 59.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Village Super Market

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VLGEA. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Village Super Market by 7.5% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 64,122 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,437,000 after purchasing an additional 4,459 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in Village Super Market by 4.8% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 14,535 shares of the company’s stock valued at $560,000 after purchasing an additional 671 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in Village Super Market by 6.6% in the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 8,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $342,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Village Super Market by 207.7% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 7,508 shares of the company’s stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 5,068 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Village Super Market by 3.9% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 20,917 shares of the company’s stock valued at $805,000 after purchasing an additional 783 shares in the last quarter. 39.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Village Super Market

Village Super Market, Inc is a publicly traded supermarket operator headquartered in Springfield, New Jersey. The company operates a network of ShopRite-branded grocery stores under a membership agreement with Wakefern Food Corp., one of the largest retailer-owned cooperatives in the United States. Through its ShopRite banner, Village Super Market serves communities across northern and central New Jersey, offering a full range of grocery products from fresh produce, meat, seafood and bakery items to dairy, deli and health and beauty merchandise.

The company’s supermarkets feature an array of in-store services designed to meet diverse customer needs.