Central Garden & Pet Company $CENTA Stake Trimmed by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its stake in Central Garden & Pet Company by 3.5%, owning 3,461,807 shares valued at approximately $113.3 million as per its latest SEC filing.
• Chairman William E. Brown sold 7,800 shares of the company's stock, leading to a 2.03% decrease in his position, with his remaining shares valued at over $12 million.
• Analysts have revised their ratings for Central Garden & Pet, with Canaccord Genuity raising its price target to $50.00 and Wall Street Zen upgrading the stock from "hold" to "buy."

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lessened its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA - Free Report) by 3.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,461,807 shares of the company's stock after selling 125,528 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 5.28% of Central Garden & Pet worth $113,302,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,652 shares of the company's stock valued at $447,000 after purchasing an additional 604 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Central Garden & Pet during the 1st quarter worth approximately $573,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in Central Garden & Pet during the 1st quarter worth approximately $224,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Central Garden & Pet by 5.7% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Central Garden & Pet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,922,000. 50.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on CENTA. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $35.00 price objective (down previously from $40.00) on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Central Garden & Pet from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $38.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Central Garden & Pet news, Chairman William E. Brown sold 7,800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $12,091,351.32. This trade represents a 2.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider John D. Walker III sold 3,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.59, for a total value of $114,065.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 20.28% of the company's stock.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Performance

CENTA stock traded up $0.36 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $32.77. The company had a trading volume of 83,652 shares, compared to its average volume of 365,431. The company has a quick ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 3.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.88 and a beta of 0.67. Central Garden & Pet Company has a one year low of $27.70 and a one year high of $37.35. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $33.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.22.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 company had revenue of $960.91 million for 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.38 EPS for the current year.

Central Garden & Pet 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.