Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVO) Short Interest Down 23.6% in November

Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVO) was the target of a large drop in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,260,000 shares, a drop of 23.6% from the October 31st total of 1,650,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 315,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.0 days. Currently, 2.8% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mission Produce news, Director Luis A. Gonzalez sold 49,331 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.03, for a total value of $642,782.93. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,398,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $96,407,693.06. This trade represents a 0.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jay A. Pack sold 22,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.41, for a total value of $295,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,115,160 shares in the company, valued at $14,954,295.60. This trade represents a 1.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 296,059 shares of company stock valued at $3,920,360. 41.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Mission Produce

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Mission Produce during the third quarter valued at approximately $440,000. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Mission Produce by 308.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 67,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $860,000 after purchasing an additional 50,680 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mission Produce by 2.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,076,007 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,797,000 after purchasing an additional 22,090 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Mission Produce by 113.1% during the third quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 40,861 shares of the company’s stock valued at $524,000 after purchasing an additional 21,682 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mission Produce by 171.9% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 158,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,029,000 after purchasing an additional 100,055 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AVO has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Roth Mkm increased their target price on Mission Produce from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Lake Street Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $15.00 price target on shares of Mission Produce in a report on Tuesday, September 10th.

Mission Produce Stock Up 2.3 %

NASDAQ:AVO traded up $0.30 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $13.30. The stock had a trading volume of 177,942 shares, compared to its average volume of 224,566. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 1.40. The company has a market capitalization of $943.10 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.30 and a beta of 0.50. Mission Produce has a 1-year low of $8.28 and a 1-year high of $14.17. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $12.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.59.

Mission Produce (NASDAQ:AVO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, September 9th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.23. Mission Produce had a return on equity of 6.69% and a net margin of 2.06%. The firm had revenue of $324.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $229.90 million. Equities analysts anticipate that Mission Produce will post 0.39 EPS for the current year.

About Mission Produce

Mission Produce, Inc engages in the sourcing, farming, packaging, marketing, and distribution of avocados, mangoes, and blueberries to food retailers, distributors, and foodservice customers in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments, Marketing and Distribution; International Farming; and Blueberries.