Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) Sets New 1-Year Low – What’s Next?

Shares of Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $26.20 and last traded at $26.27, with a volume of 350625 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $26.76.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on Central Garden & Pet from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Central Garden & Pet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $38.67.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Down 1.8%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.94 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 3.56 and a quick ratio of 2.28. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $31.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.97.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.22. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 4.44% and a return on equity of 10.77%. The business had revenue of $960.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $993.66 million. Equities analysts expect that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Central Garden & Pet

In other Central Garden & Pet news, insider John D. Walker III sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.59, for a total transaction of $114,065.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 67,328 shares in the company, valued at $2,194,219.52. The trade was a 4.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director John Ranelli sold 3,076 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.58, for a total transaction of $100,216.08. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,491.66. This represents a 68.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 20.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Central Garden & Pet

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 3.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,174,296 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,034,000 after buying an additional 73,755 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 10.6% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,749,801 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,751,000 after buying an additional 167,901 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 21.1% during the first quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 1,164,376 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,110,000 after buying an additional 202,761 shares during the last quarter. Armistice Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 28.8% during the first quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 1,025,085 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,551,000 after buying an additional 229,324 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 3.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 941,185 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,454,000 after buying an additional 30,763 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.82% of the company’s stock.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet Co engages in the production and distribution of branded and private label products for the lawn, garden, and pet supplies markets. It operates through the Pet and Garden segments. The Pet segment focuses on dog and cat supplies such as dog treats and chews, toys, pet beds and containment, grooming products, waste management and training pads, supplies for aquatics, small animals, reptiles and pet birds including toys, cages and habitats, bedding, food and supplements, products for equine and livestock, animal and household health and insect control products, live fish, and small animals, as well as outdoor cushions.