Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Stock Has Consensus Price Target of $75.75

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the nineteen brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have assigned a hold recommendation and ten have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $75.75.

Several research analysts have weighed in on FRPT shares. Needham & Company LLC assumed coverage on Freshpet in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Freshpet from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen raised Freshpet from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $72.00 target price (down from $77.00) on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $101.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 6th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Walter George acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $64.92 per share, with a total value of $64,920.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 51,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,359,350.32. This trade represents a 1.97% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO William Cyr sold 41,022 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.86, for a total value of $2,988,862.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 267,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,464,694.72. The trade was a 13.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 171,636 shares of company stock worth $12,754,864. Insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FRPT. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its position in shares of Freshpet by 606.8% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 417 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in Freshpet in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Freshpet during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Freshpet in the second quarter worth $61,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Freshpet by 254.8% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,689 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 1,213 shares in the last quarter.

Freshpet Price Performance

Shares of Freshpet stock opened at $65.26 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.17 and a beta of 1.78. Freshpet has a 52-week low of $46.45 and a 52-week high of $86.00. The company has a fifty day moving average of $66.57 and a 200-day moving average of $60.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 5.03 and a current ratio of 6.05.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.17. Freshpet had a net margin of 17.28% and a return on equity of 5.97%. The business had revenue of $305.59 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $292.35 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.33 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Freshpet will post 1.26 EPS for the current year.

About Freshpet

Freshpet, Inc (NASDAQ: FRPT) is a pet food company that develops, manufactures and markets refrigerated, fresh food and treats for dogs and cats. Its products are made with ingredients such as meat, poultry, fish, vegetables and other components, and are kept refrigerated throughout distribution and retail.

The company sells fresh meals, rolls, treats and other pet nutrition products under the Freshpet brand and related product lines. Its offerings are marketed through grocery stores, mass merchants, club stores, pet specialty retailers, e-commerce platforms and other retail channels.

Freshpet was founded in 2006 and is based in Secaucus, New Jersey.