Walleye Capital LLC Acquires Shares of 42,354 Central Garden & Pet Company $CENTA

Key Points

• Walleye Capital LLC invested approximately $1.39 million in Central Garden & Pet Company, acquiring 42,354 shares during the first quarter.
• Central Garden & Pet's stock received a buy rating from Canaccord Genuity Group, with a raised price target of $50.00, signaling optimism among analysts.
• The company reported a net margin of 4.44% and beat the consensus EPS estimate with $1.56 for the last quarter, although revenue was slightly below expectations.

Walleye Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 42,354 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,386,000. Walleye Capital LLC owned about 0.06% of Central Garden & Pet as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CENTA. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 53.1% during the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,490 shares of the company's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet during the first quarter worth $224,000. Numerai GP LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet during the fourth quarter worth $237,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet during the first quarter worth $255,000. Finally, State of Wyoming grew its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 66.6% during the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 8,914 shares of the company's stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 3,563 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 50.82% of the company's stock.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of CENTA stock traded up $0.35 on Wednesday, hitting $33.87. 296,974 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 366,490. The company has a current ratio of 3.56, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.40 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a 50-day moving average of $33.64 and a 200 day moving average of $32.21. Central Garden & Pet Company has a fifty-two week low of $27.70 and a fifty-two week high of $37.35.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.22. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 10.77% and a net margin of 4.44%.The firm had revenue of $960.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $993.66 million. Equities analysts anticipate that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.38 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on Central Garden & Pet from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen raised Central Garden & Pet from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $38.67.

Insider Activity at Central Garden & Pet

In other Central Garden & Pet news, Director John Ranelli sold 3,076 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.58, for a total value of $100,216.08. Following the sale, the director owned 1,427 shares in the company, valued at $46,491.66. This represents a 68.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider John D. Walker III sold 3,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.59, for a total value of $114,065.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 67,328 shares in the company, valued at $2,194,219.52. This represents a 4.94% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 20.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet Co engages in the production and distribution of branded and private label products for the lawn, garden, and pet supplies markets. It operates through the Pet and Garden segments. The Pet segment focuses on dog and cat supplies such as dog treats and chews, toys, pet beds and containment, grooming products, waste management and training pads, supplies for aquatics, small animals, reptiles and pet birds including toys, cages and habitats, bedding, food and supplements, products for equine and livestock, animal and household health and insect control products, live fish, and small animals, as well as outdoor cushions.