StockNews.com Downgrades Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) to Sell

StockNews.com lowered shares of Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Wednesday.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Freshpet from $155.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Freshpet from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Freshpet from $126.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $157.80.

Freshpet Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ FRPT opened at $156.76 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $7.61 billion, a PE ratio of 176.14 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 3.91 and a current ratio of 4.72. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $142.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $133.53. Freshpet has a 52-week low of $68.22 and a 52-week high of $159.12.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $253.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $248.36 million. Freshpet had a return on equity of 3.67% and a net margin of 4.75%. Freshpet’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.15) EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Freshpet will post 0.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 2,178 shares of the firm’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 value of $304,941.78. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 86,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,046,320.39. This trade represents a 2.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Thembeka Machaba sold 2,500 shares of Freshpet stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.85, for a total value of $384,625.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Freshpet during the 1st quarter valued at about $811,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Freshpet in the second quarter worth approximately $3,964,000. Geneva Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 166.2% in the third quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 84,221 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,519,000 after buying an additional 52,584 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Freshpet during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,299,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,666,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $540,650,000 after acquiring an additional 13,709 shares during the period.

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.