Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT - Free Report) by 517.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,321 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 13,676 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Freshpet were worth $1,357,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in FRPT. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Freshpet in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $293,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Freshpet by 143.8% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 173,310 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,669,000 after buying an additional 102,232 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Freshpet by 267.0% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 155,596 shares of the company's stock valued at $23,045,000 after buying an additional 113,200 shares in the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP lifted its stake in shares of Freshpet by 44.4% in the fourth quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 3,322 shares of the company's stock valued at $492,000 after buying an additional 1,022 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Freshpet by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 11,732 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,738,000 after buying an additional 220 shares in the last quarter.
Freshpet Trading Down 1.9%
Shares of FRPT opened at $62.74 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 3.92 and a current ratio of 4.81. Freshpet, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $62.27 and a fifty-two week high of $164.07. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $71.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $88.70. The firm has a market cap of $3.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 93.64, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.77.
Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $264.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $269.75 million. Freshpet had a net margin of 3.23% and a return on equity of 4.82%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.03) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of research analysts recently weighed in on FRPT shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Freshpet from $100.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Freshpet from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $96.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They issued a "sell" rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $91.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Freshpet from $125.00 to $115.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $116.64.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on FRPT
Freshpet Profile
(
Free Report)
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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