Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 27,510 Shares of Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL)

Franklin Resources Inc. decreased its position in shares of Vital Farms, Inc. (NASDAQ:VITL) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 345,073 shares of the company’s stock after selling 27,510 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Vital Farms were worth $13,006,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in VITL. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 417.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,431,024 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,625,000 after buying an additional 1,961,550 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Vital Farms by 78.7% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,171,950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,172,000 after acquiring an additional 516,139 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Vital Farms by 96.3% in the fourth quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 628,709 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,696,000 after acquiring an additional 308,425 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its position in shares of Vital Farms by 30.0% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 905,354 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,123,000 after purchasing an additional 208,951 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Emerald Advisers LLC raised its stake in Vital Farms by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 864,323 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,576,000 after purchasing an additional 157,883 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.59% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on VITL. Craig Hallum began coverage on Vital Farms in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price target for the company. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $52.00 price target on shares of Vital Farms in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Vital Farms from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $44.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Vital Farms in a research report on Monday, March 24th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $30.00 target price on the stock. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $42.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vital Farms news, insider Matthew Ohayer sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.46, for a total value of $589,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 6,970,890 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $205,362,419.40. This represents a 0.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 59,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,677,632.10. The trade was a 32.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 145,474 shares of company stock valued at $5,969,700 over the last three months. 27.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Vital Farms Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:VITL opened at $32.69 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $1.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.19 and a beta of 0.96. Vital Farms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $24.12 and a 12 month high of $48.41. 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 has a 50-day moving average price of $33.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.68.

Vital Farms (NASDAQ:VITL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $165.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $160.32 million. Vital Farms had a return on equity of 22.29% and a net margin of 8.68%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Vital Farms, Inc. will post 1.11 earnings per share for the current year.

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.