Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Trading 6.5% Higher – Here’s Why

Shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) shot up 6.5% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $55.91 and last traded at $56.8280. 91,988 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 94% from the average daily volume of 1,514,886 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.38.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FRPT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $63.00 price target on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Freshpet from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Freshpet in a report on Monday, June 15th. Oppenheimer upgraded Freshpet from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Freshpet from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $66.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Freshpet presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.88.

Freshpet Trading Up 7.1%

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.28 and a beta of 1.63. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $55.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $63.59. The company has a quick ratio of 5.26, a current ratio of 6.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Insider Activity at Freshpet

In other news, Director Craig D. Steeneck purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $47.83 per share, for a total transaction of $95,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 37,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,793,625. This represents a 5.63% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO William B. Cyr sold 42,495 shares of Freshpet stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.03, for a total value of $2,168,519.85. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 224,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,454,142.77. The trade was a 15.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 4,211 shares of company stock valued at $215,027 and sold 235,262 shares valued at $11,664,591. 4.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freshpet

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. JANA Partners Management LP boosted its position in shares of Freshpet by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. JANA Partners Management LP now owns 1,048,136 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,763,000 after acquiring an additional 41,373 shares in the last quarter. Western Standard LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet in the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,527,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Freshpet by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,281,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $321,822,000 after acquiring an additional 128,499 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Freshpet by 30.9% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,952,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $118,982,000 after acquiring an additional 461,444 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fox Run Management L.L.C. lifted its stake in Freshpet by 496.0% during the third quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 19,037 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,049,000 after purchasing an additional 15,843 shares during 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.