Lisanti Capital Growth LLC Buys 70,200 Shares of Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT

Lisanti Capital Growth LLC bought a new stake in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 70,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,041,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. William Blair Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Freshpet during the second quarter worth $107,066,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in Freshpet by 200.6% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 651,202 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,395,000 after acquiring an additional 434,582 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Freshpet in the second quarter valued at $23,587,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its position in shares of Freshpet by 146.5% in the 2nd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 552,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,658,000 after acquiring an additional 328,259 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Freshpet by 11.8% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,829,688 shares of the company’s stock valued at $167,291,000 after acquiring an additional 298,460 shares during the period.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on FRPT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 5th. Needham & Company LLC assumed coverage on Freshpet in a report on Thursday, October 1st. They set a “hold” rating for the company. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Freshpet from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. DA Davidson lowered their price target on Freshpet from $101.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Freshpet from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.31.

Freshpet Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Freshpet stock opened at $64.52 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 5.68 and a quick ratio of 4.65. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.83. Freshpet, Inc. has a 1 year low of $46.45 and a 1 year high of $86.00. The company has a market capitalization of $3.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.60 and a beta of 1.75.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $317.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $312.02 million. Freshpet had a net margin of 10.90% and a return on equity of 6.39%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.86 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.25 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Freshpet

In related news, Director Walter N. George acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $64.92 per share, for a total transaction of $64,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 51,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,359,350.32. The trade was a 1.97% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO William B. Cyr sold 41,022 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were 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 directly owned 267,152 shares in the company, valued at $19,464,694.72. The trade was a 13.31% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 171,636 shares of company stock worth $12,754,864. 4.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Freshpet Profile

Freshpet, Inc. makes and markets fresh, refrigerated food and treats for dogs and cats. Founded in 2006, the company focuses on recipes made with fresh ingredients and positioned as an alternative to shelf-stable pet food. Its products are sold under brands including Freshpet, Freshpet Select, Vital and Nature’s Fresh. Freshpet distributes them through refrigerated displays in grocery, mass-market, club and pet specialty stores, as well as through online retailers. The company primarily serves customers in the United States and Canada and also sells its products in select international markets.