WINTON GROUP Ltd Increases Position in Vital Farms, Inc. $VITL

WINTON GROUP Ltd raised its position in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) by 483.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 65,352 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 54,152 shares during the quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd’s holdings in Vital Farms were worth $2,087,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in Vital Farms by 4,382.6% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,008 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Farms during the third quarter worth $55,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Vital Farms by 225.6% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 1,006 shares during the period. State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Farms during the fourth quarter worth $66,000. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vital Farms during the third quarter worth $105,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.59% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VITL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $16.00 price objective (down from $47.00) on shares of Vital Farms in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on Vital Farms from $20.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 11th. William Blair reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Vital Farms in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Benchmark lowered Vital Farms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered Vital Farms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $25.00 to $16.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $27.33.

Vital Farms Price Performance

Vital Farms stock opened at $10.04 on Monday. Vital Farms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $7.95 and a twelve month high of $53.13. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $11.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $430.21 million, a P/E ratio of 9.65 and a beta of 1.10.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.03) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $187.16 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $182.40 million. Vital Farms had a net margin of 6.10% and a return on equity of 14.47%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.37 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Vital Farms, Inc. will post -0.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vital Farms news, insider Stephanie Coon bought 5,895 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $8.42 per share, with a total value of $49,635.90. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 62,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $524,683.88. This represents a 10.45% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Peter Nicholas Pappas bought 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $8.51 per share, for a total transaction of $29,785.00. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 85,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $724,788.19. The trade was a 4.29% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders bought 38,700 shares of company stock worth $320,864. 3.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Vital Farms

Vital Farms, traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol VITL, is a U.S.-based food company specializing in pasture-raised egg and dairy products. The company partners with a network of family farms across the United States to produce eggs, butter and related items under a certified humane, pasture-centric farming model. Vital Farms’ supply chain emphasizes animal welfare, environmental stewardship and transparent sourcing, appealing to consumers seeking ethically produced, high-quality ingredients.

Founded in 2007 and headquartered in Austin, Texas, Vital Farms began by marketing pasture-raised eggs to health- and ethically minded shoppers.