LPL Financial LLC Sells 16,653 Shares of Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC has reduced its stake in Freshpet, Inc. by 34.1%, selling 16,653 shares and now owning approximately 0.07% of the company, valued at $2,620,000.
• Freshpet reported strong quarterly earnings with an EPS of $0.33, exceeding the estimate of $0.12, despite revenue slightly missing expectations at $264.69 million.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on Freshpet, with one sell rating, six hold ratings, and eight buy ratings, resulting in an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $110.36 for the stock.

LPL Financial LLC reduced its stake in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT - Free Report) by 34.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,205 shares of the company's stock after selling 16,653 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Freshpet worth $2,620,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. XTX Topco Ltd raised its position in Freshpet by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 1,749 shares of the company's stock valued at $259,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 12,662 shares of the company's stock worth $1,874,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the period. GeoWealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet in the fourth quarter worth about $122,000. Freedom Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Freshpet by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,678 shares of the company's stock valued at $249,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP purchased a new position in Freshpet during the 4th quarter valued at about $215,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FRPT has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on Freshpet in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They set a "sell" rating and a $65.00 price objective on the stock. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Freshpet from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $91.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $95.00 target price (down from $120.00) on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $90.00 target price on shares of Freshpet and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $110.36.

Freshpet Trading Down 3.2%

Shares of Freshpet stock opened at $61.24 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 91.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 3.75 and a current ratio of 4.81. The company has a fifty day moving average of $69.94 and a 200 day moving average of $84.80. Freshpet, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $61.12 and a fifty-two week high of $164.07.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.21. Freshpet had a net margin of 3.23% and a return on equity of 4.82%. The business had revenue of $264.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $269.75 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.03) EPS. The business's revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

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