Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) has received an average analyst recommendation of "Hold" from six analysts, with five ratings indicating hold and one indicating buy.
• The stock is currently trading at $26.76, down 2.2%, with a market capitalization of $1.68 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.16.
• Recent earnings reports show that Central Garden & Pet exceeded expectations by reporting $1.56 earnings per share against a consensus estimate of $1.34, although revenue fell short of projections.

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the six analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $38.6667.

CENTA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Research cut Central Garden & Pet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a research note on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Central Garden & Pet from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 20th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on Central Garden & Pet from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:CENTA opened at $26.76 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.16 and a beta of 0.63. Central Garden & Pet has a 12-month low of $26.72 and a 12-month high of $37.35. The company has a current ratio of 3.56, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $960.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $993.66 million. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 10.77% and a net margin of 4.44%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Central Garden & Pet

In other news, insider John D. Walker III sold 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.59, for a total value of $114,065.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 67,328 shares in the company, valued at $2,194,219.52. The trade was a 4.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director John Ranelli sold 3,076 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.58, for a total value of $100,216.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,427 shares of the company's stock, valued at $46,491.66. This represents a 68.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 20.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CENTA. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Central Garden & Pet by 444.0% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,001 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 817 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its position in Central Garden & Pet by 152.1% during the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 1,215 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 733 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Central Garden & Pet by 53.1% during the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,490 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 517 shares during the last quarter. EMC Capital Management purchased a new stake in Central Garden & Pet during the second quarter valued at $87,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in Central Garden & Pet by 239.5% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,220 shares of the company's stock valued at $195,000 after acquiring an additional 4,388 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.82% of the company's stock.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet Co engages in the production and distribution of branded and private label products for the lawn, garden, and pet supplies markets. It operates through the Pet and Garden segments. The Pet segment focuses on dog and cat supplies such as dog treats and chews, toys, pet beds and containment, grooming products, waste management and training pads, supplies for aquatics, small animals, reptiles and pet birds including toys, cages and habitats, bedding, food and supplements, products for equine and livestock, animal and household health and insect control products, live fish, and small animals, as well as outdoor cushions.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.