Holdings Venture Globalharvest Buys 491,865 Shares of Mission Produce (NASDAQ:AVO) Stock

Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVO) major shareholder Holdings Venture Globalharvest acquired 491,865 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $13.40 per share, for a total transaction of $6,590,991.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 11,683,217 shares in the company, valued at approximately $156,555,107.80. This represents a 4.40% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Holdings Venture Globalharvest also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, July 8th, Holdings Venture Globalharvest acquired 687,222 shares of Mission Produce stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $13.42 per share, for a total transaction of $9,222,519.24.
• On Monday, July 6th, Holdings Venture Globalharvest bought 650,415 shares of Mission Produce stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $12.73 per share, for a total transaction of $8,279,782.95.

Mission Produce Price Performance

AVO stock traded down $0.15 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $13.35. 2,070,202 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,130,773. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 1.12. Mission Produce, Inc. has a 12-month low of $10.07 and a 12-month high of $15.53. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $12.02 and its 200 day moving average is $12.88. The company has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.72 and a beta of 0.49.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Mission Produce from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Mission Produce from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 13th. UBS Group set a $16.00 price objective on shares of Mission Produce in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Mission Produce to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.67.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Mission Produce by 12.4% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,024,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,614,000 after purchasing an additional 334,629 shares in the last quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Mission Produce during the 1st quarter worth $23,756,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Platform Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mission Produce during the fourth quarter worth $12,130,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Mission Produce by 26.9% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 510,340 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,920,000 after buying an additional 108,124 shares during the last quarter. 63.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Mission Produce

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.