Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $74.8750.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Freshpet from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $66.00 to $68.00 in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Freshpet from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, March 20th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $66.00 target price on shares of Freshpet in a report on Thursday, May 7th. TD Cowen raised shares of Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $63.00 target price on shares of Freshpet in a report on Thursday, May 7th.

Freshpet Trading Down 5.1%

Shares of Freshpet stock opened at $48.63 on Friday. Freshpet has a 1 year low of $46.76 and a 1 year high of $89.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 5.26 and a current ratio of 6.18. The company has a market capitalization of $2.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.00 and a beta of 1.73. The company’s fifty day moving average is $65.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $64.42.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.21. Freshpet had a net margin of 17.63% and a return on equity of 6.22%. The company had revenue of $285.23 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $285.66 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.36 EPS. Freshpet’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Freshpet will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO William B. Cyr sold 4,174 shares of Freshpet stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.72, for a total value of $220,053.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 7,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $381,060.16. The trade was a 36.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Walter N. George bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $54.67 per share, for a total transaction of $109,340.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 50,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,774,283.82. This represents a 4.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 4.43% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Freshpet

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,281,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $321,822,000 after buying an additional 128,499 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 5.2% during the first quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 4,141,437 shares of the company’s stock worth $244,179,000 after buying an additional 204,128 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 30.9% during the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,952,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $118,982,000 after buying an additional 461,444 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,587,691 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,738,000 after buying an additional 104,913 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Armistice Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 1,296,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $78,965,000 after buying an additional 61,198 shares in the last quarter.

Freshpet Company Profile

Freshpet Inc (NASDAQ: FRPT) is a leading pet food company specializing in fresh, refrigerated meals and treats for dogs and cats. The company’s products are formulated with carefully selected, natural ingredients and are designed to offer a higher level of nutrition and freshness than traditional dry or canned pet foods. Freshpet’s offerings include refrigerated rolls, pâtés and snacks, all of which are sold through the refrigerated section of grocery, mass-market and pet specialty stores.

Freshpet’s product portfolio is built around the concept of fresh, minimally processed recipes that do not require preservatives or artificial colors.