Petco Health and Wellness (NASDAQ:WOOF) Raised to "Strong-Buy" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Petco Health and Wellness (NASDAQ: WOOF) has been upgraded from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" by Zacks Research, signaling increased confidence from analysts.
• Wells Fargo and UBS have also raised their target prices for Petco's stock, with Wells Fargo setting a new target of $4.00, indicating positive outlook among several research firms.
• Petco reported earnings of $0.05 per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' estimates, though revenues were down 2.3% year-over-year.

Petco Health and Wellness (NASDAQ:WOOF - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on WOOF. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Petco Health and Wellness from $3.50 to $4.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Petco Health and Wellness from $5.00 to $4.50 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 6th. UBS Group increased their target price on Petco Health and Wellness from $3.25 to $3.70 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Petco Health and Wellness in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $4.00 target price on shares of Petco Health and Wellness in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $3.95.

Petco Health and Wellness Stock Performance

Shares of WOOF opened at $3.67 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The company has a market capitalization of $1.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -36.70 and a beta of 1.74. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $3.27 and a 200 day moving average of $3.07. Petco Health and Wellness has a 12 month low of $2.28 and a 12 month high of $6.29.

Petco Health and Wellness (NASDAQ:WOOF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 28th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.02 by $0.03. Petco Health and Wellness had a negative net margin of 0.47% and a negative return on equity of 1.71%. The company had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.49 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.02) EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Petco Health and Wellness will post -0.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Petco Health and Wellness

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in Petco Health and Wellness by 12.8% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 26,055 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 2,951 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its position in Petco Health and Wellness by 27.8% during the second quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 15,208 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 3,308 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in Petco Health and Wellness by 17.6% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 28,419 shares of the company's stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 4,258 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Petco Health and Wellness by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 15,841 shares of the company's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 4,526 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. raised its position in Petco Health and Wellness by 41.0% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 15,841 shares of the company's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 4,610 shares in the last quarter.

Petco Health and Wellness Company Profile

Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc, operates as a health and wellness company, focuses on enhancing the lives of pets, pet parents, and its Petco partners in the United States, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. The company provides veterinary care, grooming, training, tele-health, and Vital Care and pet health insurance services, as well as veterinary services through Vetco mobile clinics.

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