Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday. The company traded as high as $48.02 and last traded at $47.7590, with a volume of 3,617 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $46.35.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on CENT. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 17th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.00.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Up 4.3%

The company has a market capitalization of $3.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.98 and a beta of 0.62. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $41.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.02. The company has a current ratio of 3.79, a quick ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $883.72 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $882.96 million. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 11.13% and a net margin of 5.39%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.56 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.98 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Central Garden & Pet

In related news, insider John Walker, III sold 5,000 shares of Central Garden & Pet stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.50, for a total transaction of $192,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 64,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,490,141.50. The trade was a 7.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 8.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Central Garden & Pet

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Central Garden & Pet during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 598.8% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 1,006 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 119.9% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in shares of Central Garden & Pet in the third quarter valued at $53,000. Finally, Nykredit A S bought a new position in shares of Central Garden & Pet in the second quarter valued at $80,000. 16.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT) develops, manufactures, and distributes products for the pet and lawn-and-garden markets. Its pet business serves owners of dogs, cats, birds, fish, small animals, and reptiles with products such as toys, chews, treats, habitats, aquatics equipment, bedding, and animal-care supplies.

The company’s lawn-and-garden operations offer grass seed, fertilizer, weed and pest control products, soil amendments, and other gardening supplies. Its portfolio includes brands such as Pennington, Aqueon, Kaytee, Nylabone, Four Paws, API, and Wild Bird.

Founded in 1955, Central Garden & Pet sells its products primarily through mass merchants, home-improvement and garden retailers, pet specialty stores, independent retailers, distributors, and e-commerce channels.