Vitacost Shows Healthy Growth

While Vitacost.com may be relatively small compared to other online retailers such as Amazon or Walmart, Gene Marcial argues in an article for DailyFinance.com that the company is growing robustly and is really leading the way in direct marketing of health and wellness products to consumers. As an example, Marcial noted Vitacosts stock price has doubled in just about two months, hitting a 52-week high of $12.82 in mid-January; it also posted impressive fourth-quarter results, with revenues up 32 percent from a year ago, and is poised for significant growth as consumers increasingly turn to the Internet for their dietary supplement purchases. One key to this growth is its aggressive pricing strategy, offering products at up to 60 percent below manufacturers suggested retail prices.

Elizabeth Pierce, senior research analyst at Roth Capital Partners, was quoted by Marcial as noting Vitacost is well positioned for accelerated growth, adding she rates the stock a buy, and has boosted her sales and earnings estimates for 2010 and 2011, due in part to the companys plan to expand its distribution facilities. Further, Joseph Altobello, analyst at Oppenheimer, noted in the DailyFinance story that Vitacosts valuation remains attractive, and rates the stock outperform.

Marcial concluded, If online shopping continues to take a bigger share of total retail sales, betting on niche Internet retailer Vitacost could well be a good way to bag a Web winner.