Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Central Garden & Pet has been upgraded from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, indicating increased analyst confidence in the stock's future performance.
• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has reduced its price target for the stock from $34.00 to $31.00, while Canaccord Genuity Group raised theirs significantly from $45.00 to $50.00.
• The stock opened at $30.70 with a market capitalization of $2.01 billion, and analysts expect a consensus earnings of 2.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Saturday morning.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Truist Financial reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $35.00 price objective (down previously from $40.00) on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $34.00 to $31.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $38.67.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Up 2.6%

NASDAQ:CENTA traded up $0.82 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $32.69. The stock had a trading volume of 56,655 shares, compared to its average volume of 362,650. Central Garden & Pet has a one year low of $27.70 and a one year high of $37.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 3.56. The company has a market cap of $2.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.85 and a beta of 0.67. The business's 50 day moving average is $33.13 and its 200-day moving average is $32.17.

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

Insider Activity at Central Garden & Pet

In other news, Chairman William E. Brown sold 7,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.04, for a total value of $249,912.00. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 377,383 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,091,351.32. This represents a 2.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 107,800 shares of company stock valued at $3,490,112. Corporate insiders own 20.28% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 10.6% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,749,801 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,751,000 after purchasing an additional 167,901 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 21.1% during the first quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 1,164,376 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,110,000 after buying an additional 202,761 shares during the period. Armistice Capital LLC grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 28.8% during the first quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 1,025,085 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,551,000 after buying an additional 229,324 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 3.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 941,185 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,454,000 after buying an additional 30,763 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Central Garden & Pet by 5.7% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 879,769 shares of the company's stock worth $28,795,000 after purchasing an additional 47,257 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.82% of the company's stock.

Central Garden & Pet Company Profile

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.