Norges Bank Makes New Investment in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 508,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $75,253,000. Norges Bank owned 1.05% of Freshpet as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of FRPT. Cerity Partners LLC bought a new position in Freshpet during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,044,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 2.9% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 11,848 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,620,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of Freshpet by 9.7% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 10,913 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,493,000 after buying an additional 966 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its stake in shares of Freshpet by 2.8% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 7,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,035,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the period. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new stake in Freshpet during the 3rd quarter valued at $571,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on FRPT. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $142.00 to $110.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a report on Monday, February 24th. Oppenheimer cut Freshpet from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Freshpet from $155.00 to $142.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $140.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Freshpet has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $146.53.

Freshpet Stock Performance

Freshpet stock opened at $85.73 on Thursday. Freshpet, Inc. has a twelve month low of $80.27 and a twelve month high of $164.07. The company has a quick ratio of 3.91, a current ratio of 4.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market capitalization of $4.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 91.20 and a beta of 1.80. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $113.80 and its 200 day moving average is $134.61.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36. The firm had revenue of $262.71 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $275.46 million. Freshpet had a return on equity of 3.92% and a net margin of 4.81%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Freshpet Company Profile

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.