125,000 Shares in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) Acquired by Impax Asset Management Group plc

Impax Asset Management Group plc bought a new position in shares of Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 125,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,711,000. Impax Asset Management Group plc owned 0.29% of Vital Farms as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VITL. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new position in Vital Farms in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Mendota Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Vital Farms in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $62,000. Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake in Vital Farms by 29.4% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its stake in Vital Farms by 191.2% in the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 1,814 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 1,191 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP increased its stake in Vital Farms by 87.1% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,414 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 1,124 shares during the last quarter. 98.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CMO Kathryn Mckeon sold 12,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.08, for a total transaction of $517,584.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 46,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,944,222.24. This trade represents a 21.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Joanne Bal sold 28,246 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.10, for a total value of $1,273,894.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 59,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,677,632.10. This represents a 32.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 190,202 shares of company stock valued at $7,855,957 over the last three months. 27.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Vital Farms Stock Performance

Shares of VITL opened at $32.33 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 3.24, a quick ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $39.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.67. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.52 and a 12-month high of $48.41. The firm has a market cap of $1.42 billion, a PE ratio of 28.87 and a beta of 0.90.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Craig Hallum assumed coverage on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Vital Farms from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Vital Farms from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 target price on shares of Vital Farms in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Vital Farms from $34.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vital Farms currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.57.

About Vital Farms

Vital Farms, Inc, a food company, provides pasture-raised products in the United States. It offers shell eggs, butter, hard-boiled eggs, and liquid whole eggs. The company was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.