Renaissance Technologies LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL)

Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) by 73.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 784,153 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 331,000 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned approximately 1.86% of Vital Farms worth $36,675,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of VITL. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 116.1% in the 1st quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 862,644 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,056,000 after buying an additional 463,471 shares during the period. Emerald Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Vital Farms in the second quarter valued at approximately $15,977,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Vital Farms by 73.6% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 679,504 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,766,000 after acquiring an additional 288,039 shares during the last quarter. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust acquired a new position in Vital Farms during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $12,824,000. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Vital Farms by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 2,650,008 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,613,000 after purchasing an additional 224,335 shares during the last quarter. 98.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vital Farms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VITL opened at $31.98 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 3.50 and a quick ratio of 3.03. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $10.41 and a 12 month high of $48.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.62 and a beta of 0.96. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $34.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.23.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $147.39 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $138.41 million. Vital Farms had a return on equity of 22.77% and a net margin of 8.70%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 38.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.15 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VITL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Vital Farms from $42.00 to $34.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. TD Cowen raised Vital Farms from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $44.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.60.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 44,381 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total value of $1,939,893.51. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 427,839 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,700,842.69. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Vital Farms news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 24,000 shares of Vital Farms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.58, for a total value of $949,920.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,266,777 shares in the company, valued at approximately $287,619,033.66. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Russell Diez-Canseco sold 44,381 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.71, for a total value of $1,939,893.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 427,839 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,700,842.69. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 30.20% of the company’s stock.

Vital Farms Profile

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.