JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) Price Target to $37.00

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) had its price target raised by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $32.00 to $37.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “underweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective indicates a potential downside of 5.06% from the stock’s previous close.

CENTA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Central Garden & Pet presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.67.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Up 3.2%

Shares of NASDAQ CENTA traded up $1.21 on Thursday, hitting $38.97. The company had a trading volume of 94,954 shares, compared to its average volume of 313,498. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 3.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Central Garden & Pet has a 12-month low of $25.97 and a 12-month high of $39.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.18 and a beta of 0.57. The business has a 50 day moving average of $36.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $33.61.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $906.15 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $846.58 million. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 5.42%.Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Central Garden & Pet

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 1.4% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 33,050 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,071,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 22.6% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,295 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,000 after buying an additional 608 shares in the last quarter. Aristides Capital LLC grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 8.0% in the third quarter. Aristides Capital LLC now owns 8,436 shares of the company’s stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 623 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 2.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 30,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $996,000 after acquiring an additional 743 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 198.4% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,131 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 752 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.82% of the company’s stock.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet Co is a leading producer, marketer and distributor of branded consumable gardening products and pet supplies in North America. Headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, the company serves both retail and wholesale customers through a network of distribution centers across the United States and Canada. Operating under the ticker symbol CENTA on the NASDAQ exchange, Central Garden & Pet has been publicly traded since 2003.

The company’s Garden segment offers a broad portfolio of lawn and garden care solutions, including fertilizers, weed and pest control products, soil and mulch, and plant care accessories.