Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Acquires 10,009 Shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its position in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT - Free Report) by 24.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 51,129 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 10,009 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio owned approximately 0.11% of Freshpet worth $7,573,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet in the fourth quarter worth approximately $817,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Freshpet by 36.4% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 107,657 shares of the company's stock worth $15,945,000 after purchasing an additional 28,743 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Freshpet by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 135,629 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,088,000 after buying an additional 2,291 shares during the last quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lifted its position in shares of Freshpet by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 98,481 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,586,000 after buying an additional 6,776 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Freshpet by 406.4% during the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 53,066 shares of the company's stock worth $7,860,000 after purchasing an additional 42,587 shares in the last quarter.

Freshpet Stock Down 1.1%

FRPT traded down $0.91 on Friday, reaching $79.49. 1,509,549 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 881,898. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 4.72 and a quick ratio of 3.91. The company has a market cap of $3.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 84.56 and a beta of 1.85. Freshpet, Inc. has a 52-week low of $71.19 and a 52-week high of $164.07. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $80.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $115.63.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $263.25 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $265.57 million. Freshpet had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 3.92%. Freshpet's revenue for the quarter was up 17.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.37 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on FRPT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Freshpet from $91.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Freshpet from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Freshpet from $155.00 to $142.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Truist Financial downgraded Freshpet from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $90.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer downgraded Freshpet from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $127.86.

About Freshpet

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.