Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $130.57, but opened at $123.31. Freshpet shares last traded at $115.82, with a volume of 1,018,740 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on FRPT shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Freshpet from $157.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Freshpet in a report on Friday, November 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Freshpet from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. StockNews.com lowered Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on Freshpet from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $161.93.

Freshpet Stock Down 5.8 %

The firm has a market cap of $4.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 106.65 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a quick ratio of 3.91, a current ratio of 4.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $145.55 and a 200-day moving average of $142.91.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.36. Freshpet had a return on equity of 3.92% and a net margin of 4.81%. The business had revenue of $262.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $275.46 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Freshpet news, President Scott James Morris sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.38, for a total transaction of $786,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 122,380 shares in the company, valued at $19,260,164.40. This represents a 3.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Elequin Capital LP bought a new position in Freshpet during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Freshpet by 302.0% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in Freshpet by 130.9% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 217 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Freshpet during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Freshpet during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000.

Freshpet Company Profile

Freshpet, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, and markets natural fresh meals and treats for dogs and cats in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It sells dog food, cat food, and dog treats under the Freshpet brand name; and Dognation and Dog Joy labels through various classes of retail, including grocery, mass, club, pet specialty, and natural, as well as online.