Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Shares Down 17.3% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Shares plunged 17.3% intraday to about $53.46 from a prior close of $64.68, with roughly 1.36 million shares traded—slightly below average volume.
• Freshpet beat EPS expectations ($0.64 vs. $0.43) while revenue of $285.23 million roughly met estimates, and analysts have raised targets even as the consensus rating remains a "Hold" with a $76.88 target.
• Several large institutional investors—including Wasatch Advisors, Balyasny and Capital World—have materially increased their stakes recently, indicating significant institutional buying interest.

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report) shares were down 17.3% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $53.90 and last traded at $53.4610. Approximately 1,356,053 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 4% from the average daily volume of 1,415,757 shares. The stock had previously closed at $64.68.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FRPT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Freshpet from $82.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Oppenheimer upgraded Freshpet from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday. DA Davidson set a $98.00 target price on Freshpet in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of Freshpet from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Freshpet from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $76.88.

Freshpet Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 5.54, a quick ratio of 4.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.95, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.66. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $72.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $62.17.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.21. Freshpet had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 12.63%.The business had revenue of $285.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $285.66 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.36 EPS. Freshpet's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freshpet

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its holdings in Freshpet by 41.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,839,332 shares of the company's stock worth $260,921,000 after acquiring an additional 1,116,217 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Freshpet by 1,031.9% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 931,905 shares of the company's stock worth $56,781,000 after acquiring an additional 1,031,905 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Freshpet by 151.8% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,482,778 shares of the company's stock worth $81,716,000 after purchasing an additional 893,949 shares in the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet during the third quarter worth approximately $41,862,000. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Freshpet by 41.5% during the second quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,568,954 shares of the company's stock valued at $174,586,000 after purchasing an additional 753,070 shares during the last quarter.

Freshpet Company Profile

Freshpet Inc NASDAQ: FRPT is a leading pet food company specializing in fresh, refrigerated meals and treats for dogs and cats. The company's products are formulated with carefully selected, natural ingredients and are designed to offer a higher level of nutrition and freshness than traditional dry or canned pet foods. Freshpet's offerings include refrigerated rolls, pâtés and snacks, all of which are sold through the refrigerated section of grocery, mass-market and pet specialty stores.

Freshpet's product portfolio is built around the concept of fresh, minimally processed recipes that do not require preservatives or artificial colors.

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