Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) CEO Sells $2,168,519.85 in Stock

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) CEO William Cyr sold 42,495 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.03, for a total value of $2,168,519.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 224,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,454,142.77. This trade represents a 15.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Freshpet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FRPT traded up $1.33 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $52.33. The company had a trading volume of 2,407,863 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,546,242. Freshpet, Inc. has a twelve month low of $46.45 and a twelve month high of $86.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.57 billion, a PE ratio of 13.99 and a beta of 1.73. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $60.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $64.16. The company has a current ratio of 6.18, a quick ratio of 5.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.21. Freshpet had a return on equity of 6.22% and a net margin of 17.63%.The company had revenue of $285.23 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $285.66 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.36 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freshpet

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Freshpet by 27.2% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 59,465 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,506,000 after acquiring an additional 12,732 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Freshpet by 13.6% during the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 10,183 shares of the company’s stock valued at $600,000 after acquiring an additional 1,217 shares during the period. Maverick Capital Ltd. grew its position in Freshpet by 356.4% during the first quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 34,509 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,035,000 after acquiring an additional 26,948 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its position in Freshpet by 73.2% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 87,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,152,000 after acquiring an additional 36,932 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Alliance LLC purchased a new stake in Freshpet during the first quarter valued at about $210,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on FRPT. TD Cowen raised Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $77.00 target price on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $63.00 target price on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.88.

About Freshpet

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.