Craig Steeneck Acquires 2,000 Shares of Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Stock

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Director Craig Steeneck bought 2,000 shares of Freshpet stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $47.83 per share, with a total value of $95,660.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 37,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,793,625. The trade was a 5.63% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Freshpet Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ FRPT opened at $51.58 on Friday. Freshpet, Inc. has a 12 month low of $46.45 and a 12 month high of $86.31. The company has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.79 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a quick ratio of 5.26, a current ratio of 6.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $61.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $64.18.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $285.23 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $285.66 million. Freshpet had a return on equity of 6.22% and a net margin of 17.63%.Freshpet’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.36 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.71 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. JANA Partners Management LP increased its position in Freshpet by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. JANA Partners Management LP now owns 1,048,136 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,763,000 after purchasing an additional 41,373 shares during the last quarter. Western Standard LLC acquired a new position in Freshpet in the 3rd quarter worth about $3,527,000. ING Groep NV acquired a new position in Freshpet in the 3rd quarter worth about $6,354,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in Freshpet by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 190,296 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,487,000 after purchasing an additional 24,045 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deepwater Asset Management LLC increased its position in Freshpet by 14.3% in the 3rd quarter. Deepwater Asset Management LLC now owns 190,301 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,487,000 after purchasing an additional 23,768 shares during the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $77.00 price target on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $66.00 price target on Freshpet in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Benchmark upped their price target on Freshpet from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Freshpet from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $66.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.88.

Freshpet Company Profile

Freshpet Inc (NASDAQ: FRPT) is a leading pet food company specializing in fresh, refrigerated meals and treats for dogs and cats. The company’s products are formulated with carefully selected, natural ingredients and are designed to offer a higher level of nutrition and freshness than traditional dry or canned pet foods. Freshpet’s offerings include refrigerated rolls, pâtés and snacks, all of which are sold through the refrigerated section of grocery, mass-market and pet specialty stores.

Freshpet’s product portfolio is built around the concept of fresh, minimally processed recipes that do not require preservatives or artificial colors.