Scientech Research LLC Invests $783,000 in Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT

Key Points

• Scientech Research LLC acquired 9,419 shares of Freshpet, Inc. valued at approximately $783,000 during the first quarter.
• Freshpet's quarterly earnings surpassed expectations, reporting $0.33 earnings per share compared to the consensus estimate of $0.12, along with a 12.5% revenue increase year-over-year.
• Investment analysts have a mixed outlook on Freshpet with price targets ranging from $48 to $101, and the stock currently holds an average rating of "Hold."

Scientech Research LLC bought a new position in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 9,419 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $783,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in FRPT. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its position in shares of Freshpet by 31.6% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 214,974 shares of the company's stock worth $31,840,000 after purchasing an additional 51,621 shares in the last quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lifted its position in shares of Freshpet by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 98,481 shares of the company's stock worth $14,586,000 after purchasing an additional 6,776 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in shares of Freshpet by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 28,597 shares of the company's stock worth $4,236,000 after purchasing an additional 545 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet during the fourth quarter worth $2,108,000. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet during the fourth quarter worth $70,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. DA Davidson set a $101.00 target price on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Freshpet from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. TD Cowen lowered shares of Freshpet from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $96.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and issued a $95.00 price target (down previously from $120.00) on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $90.00 price target on shares of Freshpet and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $108.07.

Freshpet Stock Performance

FRPT stock traded up $1.62 during trading on Friday, hitting $54.82. 1,354,739 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,429,650. The company has a quick ratio of 3.75, a current ratio of 4.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Freshpet, Inc. has a 52 week low of $52.27 and a 52 week high of $164.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $63.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $74.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.72.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $264.69 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $269.75 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.03) earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Freshpet has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Freshpet

In other Freshpet news, Director Jacki Sue Kelley bought 814 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $56.50 per share, for a total transaction of $45,991.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 11,907 shares in the company, valued at approximately $672,745.50. This trade represents a 7.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy R. Mclevish bought 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $56.00 per share, with a total value of $196,000.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 35,290 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,976,240. The trade was a 11.01% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have acquired 4,630 shares of company stock valued at $259,656. 4.43% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.