New York State Teachers Retirement System Purchases Shares of 17,700 Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

New York State Teachers Retirement System acquired a new position in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 17,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,472,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Elequin Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 130.9% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 217 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Freshpet during the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new position in Freshpet during the fourth quarter valued at about $70,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Freshpet in the fourth quarter worth about $122,000.

Freshpet Stock Performance

Shares of FRPT traded up $0.64 on Thursday, reaching $70.75. 1,353,554 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 951,025. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $77.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 4.91 and a quick ratio of 3.92. The firm has a market cap of $3.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 228.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.79. Freshpet, Inc. has a 12 month low of $66.75 and a 12 month high of $164.07.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.13 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $263.25 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $265.57 million. Freshpet had a net margin of 1.54% and a return on equity of 3.16%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.37 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Freshpet from $125.00 to $115.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Monday, June 16th. They issued a "sell" rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial downgraded shares of Freshpet from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Freshpet from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Benchmark cut their target price on shares of Freshpet from $140.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $121.20.

Freshpet Profile

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.