Medifast Loses Top Zacks Rating as Analysts Turn Cautious on Unprofitable OPTAVIA Parent

BALTIMORE, Maryland - November 11, 2026

Medifast, the Baltimore-based company that sells its weight-management products through the OPTAVIA network of independent coaches, has lost its top rating at Zacks Research, which cut the stock from "strong buy" to "hold" in a note to investors on November 11, about two weeks after the company's third-quarter report.

The downgrade comes even though Medifast's most recent quarter came in slightly ahead of expectations. For the quarter reported on October 26, the company posted a loss of $0.19 per share, narrower than the $0.35 loss analysts had forecast, on revenue of $72.05 million, a little above the $71.30 million consensus. But the business remains unprofitable: Medifast's net margin for the quarter was a negative 13.64%, and its return on equity was a negative 6.90%. Analysts on average expect the company to lose about $0.57 per share for the current fiscal year.

The Zacks move removes the only bullish rating in what was already a thin and cautious set of analyst views. Two analysts now rate the stock a hold and one rates it a sell, for an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $12. Weiss Ratings had already lowered its grade on Medifast on October 28, from "sell (d)" to "sell (d-)".

Medifast shares fell 1.9% and opened at $12.89 following the downgrade, leaving the company with a market value of roughly $144 million. The stock has traded between $9.22 and $13.63 over the past 52 weeks.

Some insiders have been buying. Director Parsa Kiai purchased 43,150 shares on August 26 at an average price of $12.26, about $529,000 in total, raising his direct holding to 707,492 shares. Director Daniel R. Chard sold 9,545 shares on September 28 at $11.98 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders bought a combined 126,184 shares valued at about $1.5 million, and corporate insiders own about 3.7% of the stock.

The rating cut is a reminder of how far Medifast has fallen from its peak years as one of the largest companies in direct selling. With a market value now under $150 million and losses expected to continue for the year, the company's ability to stabilize its OPTAVIA coach network and return to profitability remains the central question for investors.