Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the fifteen ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $156.13.

FRPT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. DA Davidson increased their price objective on Freshpet from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Freshpet from $157.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Freshpet from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Freshpet from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th.

Freshpet Stock Performance

Freshpet stock opened at $156.45 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.69, a current ratio of 4.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market cap of $7.59 billion, a PE ratio of 175.79 and a beta of 1.39. Freshpet has a 12-month low of $65.85 and a 12-month high of $159.12. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $139.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $130.50.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $253.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $248.36 million. Freshpet had a net margin of 4.75% and a return on equity of 3.67%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 26.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.15) EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Freshpet will post 0.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 2,178 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.01, for a total transaction of $304,941.78. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 86,039 shares in the company, valued at $12,046,320.39. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Freshpet

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 23.0% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 739 shares of the company’s stock valued at $101,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Freshpet by 31.0% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 95,713 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,091,000 after purchasing an additional 22,651 shares during the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in Freshpet during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,751,000. Savoir Faire Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Freshpet by 119.7% in the third quarter. Savoir Faire Capital Management L.P. now owns 53,391 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,302,000 after purchasing an additional 29,091 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GLOBALT Investments LLC GA lifted its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 3.2% in the third quarter. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA now owns 3,580 shares of the company’s stock valued at $490,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter.

About Freshpet

Freshpet, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, and markets natural fresh meals and treats for dogs and cats in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It sells dog food, cat food, and dog treats under the Freshpet brand name; and Dognation and Dog Joy labels through various classes of retail, including grocery, mass, club, pet specialty, and natural, as well as online.