Medifast (NYSE:MED) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.16 EPS

Medifast (NYSE:MED) released its quarterly earnings data on Monday. The specialty retailer reported ($0.19) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by $0.16, FiscalAI reports. Medifast had a negative return on equity of 6.69% and a negative net margin of 8.08%. The firm had revenue of $72.05 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $71.30 million.

Medifast Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MED opened at $11.87 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $132.71 million, a PE ratio of -5.09 and a beta of 0.68. Medifast has a 12 month low of $9.22 and a 12 month high of $13.45. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $11.55.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MED. Weiss Ratings upgraded Medifast from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Zacks Research raised Medifast from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.00.

Insider Activity at Medifast

In other news, Director Parsa Kiai bought 43,150 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were 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 owned 707,492 shares in the company, valued at $8,673,851.92. The trade was a 6.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Daniel R. Chard sold 9,545 shares of Medifast stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.98, for a total transaction of $114,349.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 140,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,679,032.94. The trade was a 6.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have purchased 119,966 shares of company stock worth $1,423,576 in the last three months. Insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

About Medifast

Medifast, Inc (NYSE: MED) is a health and wellness company that provides weight-management products, programs and support services. Its primary brand, OPTAVIA, offers meal-replacement products, including shakes, bars, soups and other portion-controlled foods, along with structured plans intended to help customers establish healthier eating and lifestyle habits.

The company distributes its products primarily through an independent network of coaches who provide guidance, accountability and support to clients.