Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVO) Short Interest Down 28.1% in December

Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVO) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 1,322,863 shares, a decrease of 28.1% from the December 15th total of 1,838,723 shares. Currently, 2.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 831,816 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.6 days. Based on an average daily volume of 831,816 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.6 days. Currently, 2.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mission Produce

In related news, major shareholder Holdings Venture Globalharvest bought 112,505 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $11.61 per share, for a total transaction of $1,306,183.05. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 7,384,418 shares in the company, valued at $85,733,092.98. This represents a 1.55% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have purchased 353,276 shares of company stock worth $4,139,754. Company insiders own 35.41% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mission Produce

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVO. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mission Produce by 673.8% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,453 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 2,136 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Mission Produce in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new stake in shares of Mission Produce in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Mission Produce by 211.8% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,649 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 3,158 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC lifted its stake in Mission Produce by 33.7% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 4,662 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,174 shares during the last quarter. 63.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on AVO shares. Zacks Research lowered shares of Mission Produce from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Mission Produce in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Lake Street Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of Mission Produce in a research note on Thursday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Mission Produce currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $17.00.

Mission Produce Stock Performance

Shares of Mission Produce stock opened at $12.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.95. Mission Produce has a 1 year low of $9.56 and a 1 year high of $14.12. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $12.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $12.16. The firm has a market cap of $877.89 million, a PE ratio of 23.92 and a beta of 0.56.

Mission Produce (NASDAQ:AVO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $319.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $301.60 million. Mission Produce had a return on equity of 8.18% and a net margin of 2.71%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.28 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Mission Produce will post 0.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mission Produce Company Profile

Mission Produce, Inc is a leading global supplier, packer and distributor of fresh avocados, serving retail, foodservice and industrial customers. The company manages a vertically integrated supply chain that spans sourcing, post-harvest handling, packing and ripening. Through proprietary ripening technologies and cold-chain logistics, Mission Produce delivers consistent quality and extended shelf life for its avocado offerings.

Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Oxnard, California, Mission Produce grew from a regional packing operation into a publicly traded company listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker AVO.