Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT Shares Sold by Woodline Partners LP

Key Points

• Woodline Partners LP reduced its stake in Freshpet, Inc. by 49.7%, owning approximately 0.22% of the company, valued at $9.07 million, after selling over 107,000 shares.
• Several hedge funds have increased their positions in Freshpet, including Vanguard Group Inc. and Wellington Management Group LLP, with Vanguard now owning over 5.2 million shares valued at approximately $434 million.
• Freshpet's quarterly earnings surpassed analysts' expectations, reporting an EPS of $0.33 against a consensus estimate of $0.12, despite revenues slightly missing projections at $264.69 million.

Woodline Partners LP reduced its holdings in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT - Free Report) by 49.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 109,040 shares of the company's stock after selling 107,931 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP owned approximately 0.22% of Freshpet worth $9,069,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vident Advisory LLC increased its position in Freshpet by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 2,111 shares of the company's stock valued at $313,000 after buying an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Elequin Capital LP acquired a new position in Freshpet during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in Freshpet by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 2,174 shares of the company's stock valued at $322,000 after buying an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Hardy Reed LLC increased its position in Freshpet by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 2,414 shares of the company's stock valued at $201,000 after buying an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. increased its position in Freshpet by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 3,611 shares of the company's stock valued at $300,000 after buying an additional 238 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Freshpet

In related news, Director Jacki Sue Kelley purchased 814 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $56.50 per share, with a total value of $45,991.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 11,907 shares in the company, valued at $672,745.50. This trade represents a 7.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Timothy R. Mclevish purchased 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $56.00 per share, with a total value of $196,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 35,290 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,976,240. The trade was a 11.01% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders purchased 5,008 shares of company stock valued at $279,735. Insiders own 4.43% of the company's stock.

Freshpet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FRPT traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $54.07. The stock had a trading volume of 207,998 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,361,822. The company has a market capitalization of $2.64 billion, a PE ratio of 80.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.72. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $63.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $74.06. Freshpet, Inc. has a 1 year low of $52.09 and a 1 year high of $164.07. 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 (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. The business had revenue of $264.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $269.75 million. Freshpet had a return on equity of 4.82% and a net margin of 3.23%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.03) earnings per share. Freshpet has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FRPT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group reduced their target price on Freshpet from $65.00 to $48.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 8th. DA Davidson set a $101.00 price objective on Freshpet in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Freshpet from $100.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $90.00 price objective on Freshpet and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Freshpet from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $108.07.

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.