Mission Produce, Inc. $AVO Shares Acquired by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVO) by 251.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 269,286 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 192,741 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Mission Produce were worth $3,175,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Fourth Sail Capital LP increased its holdings in Mission Produce by 258.5% in the 2nd quarter. Fourth Sail Capital LP now owns 3,976,272 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,880,000 after purchasing an additional 2,867,072 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Mission Produce by 12.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,024,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,614,000 after purchasing an additional 334,629 shares in the last quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Mission Produce during the first quarter worth $23,756,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Mission Produce by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,048,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,166,000 after buying an additional 3,744 shares during the period. Finally, Platform Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mission Produce during the fourth quarter worth $12,130,000. 63.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jay A. Pack bought 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $12.10 per share, for a total transaction of $484,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 579,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,017,576.50. This trade represents a 7.41% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Holdings Venture Globalharvest bought 592,957 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 9th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $13.28 per share, with a total value of $7,874,468.96. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 12,963,396 shares in the company, valued at $172,153,898.88. This represents a 4.79% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have acquired a total of 3,352,161 shares of company stock valued at $42,458,664 in the last three months. 30.85% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AVO shares. Weiss Ratings cut Mission Produce from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered Mission Produce from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 13th. Finally, UBS Group set a $16.00 target price on Mission Produce in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $16.67.

Mission Produce Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AVO opened at $13.06 on Friday. Mission Produce, Inc. has a 52 week low of $10.07 and a 52 week high of $15.53. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.81 and a beta of 0.49.

Mission Produce declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Monday, June 8th that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 13.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mission Produce Profile

Mission Produce, Inc is a leading global supplier, packer and distributor of fresh avocados, serving retail, foodservice and industrial customers. The company manages a vertically integrated supply chain that spans sourcing, post-harvest handling, packing and ripening. Through proprietary ripening technologies and cold-chain logistics, Mission Produce delivers consistent quality and extended shelf life for its avocado offerings.

Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Oxnard, California, Mission Produce grew from a regional packing operation into a publicly traded company listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker AVO.