Short Interest in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Grows By 21.2%

Key Points

• Short interest in Freshpet rose 21.2% in March to 6,163,881 shares, equal to 13.1% of the stock sold short and a short-interest ratio of 2.7 days.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans positive with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $75.94, as firms issued both price-target cuts (JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank) and raises (Stifel, Benchmark).
• Freshpet recently beat EPS estimates ($0.64 vs. $0.43) while reporting revenue of $285.23M (+8.6% YoY); the company trades at a $3.3B market cap with a P/E of 26.2.

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 6,163,881 shares, an increase of 21.2% from the March 15th total of 5,087,556 shares. Currently, 13.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 2,242,009 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.7 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on FRPT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Freshpet from $80.00 to $66.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Freshpet from $65.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Freshpet from $69.00 to $62.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 30th. Benchmark boosted their price objective on Freshpet from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Freshpet from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $75.94.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freshpet

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 606.8% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 417 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in Freshpet during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in Freshpet in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in Freshpet by 143.0% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 503 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Freshpet by 1,388.2% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 506 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 472 shares during the last quarter.

Freshpet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FRPT opened at $67.34 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $70.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $63.24. The company has a quick ratio of 4.57, a current ratio of 5.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.20 and a beta of 1.78. Freshpet has a 52 week low of $46.76 and a 52 week high of $89.80.

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

About Freshpet

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.