Central Garden & Pet (CENTA) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Company Overview

Central Garden & Pet Co. is a leading producer, marketer and distributor of branded consumable gardening products and pet supplies in North America. Headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, the company serves both retail and wholesale customers through a network of distribution centers across the United States and Canada. Operating under the ticker symbol CENTA on the NASDAQ exchange, Central Garden & Pet has been publicly traded since 2003.

The company’s Garden segment offers a broad portfolio of lawn and garden care solutions, including fertilizers, weed and pest control products, soil and mulch, and plant care accessories. Signature brands such as Amdro®, Preen®, and Vigoro® are sold through home improvement chains, mass merchandisers and independent garden centers, addressing seasonal and year-round gardening needs.

In its Pet segment, Central Garden & Pet manufactures and markets a wide range of consumable pet products and accessories for dogs, cats, birds, fish, reptiles and small animals. Brands such as Kaytee®, BioSpot®, Nylabone® and JW Pet® cover feeding, enrichment, health and habitat solutions, serving pet specialty stores, veterinary clinics and mass retailers.

With in-house manufacturing facilities, research and development capabilities, and a focus on innovation, Central Garden & Pet supports customers with product quality, availability and compliance. The company’s leadership team, led by President and CEO Robert E. Grote, emphasizes integrated supply chain management, sustainability initiatives and strategic brand development to drive long-term growth.

Key Stats

• Today's Range: $26.59 to $27.16
• 50-Day Range: $26.27 to $35.74
• 52-Week Range: $25.97 to $37.35
• Volume: 40,222 shs
• Average Volume: 362,350 shs
• Market Capitalization: $1.68 billion
• P/E Ratio: 12.13
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Price Target: $38.67
• Consensus Rating: Hold

Central Garden & Pet Stock Analysis - MarketRank™

Central Garden & Pet scored higher than 70% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 121st out of 297 stocks in the consumer discretionary sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation.

Analyst's Opinion

• Score: 3.7 / 5
• Analyst Rating: Hold

Consensus Rating

Central Garden & Pet has received a consensus rating of Hold. The company's average rating score is 2.17, and is based on 1 buy rating, 5 hold ratings, and no sell ratings.

Upside Potential

Central Garden & Pet has a consensus price target of $38.67, representing about 44.9% upside from its current price of $26.69.

Amount of Analyst Coverage

Central Garden & Pet has only been the subject of 3 research reports in the past 90 days.

Earnings and Valuation

• Score: 1.9 / 5
• Proj. Earnings Growth: 2.10%

Earnings Growth

Earnings for Central Garden & Pet are expected to grow by 2.10% in the coming year, from $2.38 to $2.43 per share.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the Market

The P/E ratio of Central Garden & Pet is 12.13, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 232.78.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. Sector

The P/E ratio of Central Garden & Pet is 12.13, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the Consumer Discretionary sector average P/E ratio of about 18.04.

Price to Book Value per Share Ratio

Central Garden & Pet has a P/B Ratio of 1.15. P/B Ratios below 3 indicates that a company is reasonably valued with respect to its assets and liabilities.

Short Interest

• Score: 3.0 / 5
• Short Interest Level: Healthy

Percentage of Shares Shorted

1.42% of the outstanding shares of Central Garden & Pet have been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Central Garden & Pet has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 2.1, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Central Garden & Pet has recently increased by 2.86%, indicating that investor sentiment is decreasing.

Dividend

• Score: 0.0 / 5
• Dividend Strength: N/A

Dividend Yield

Central Garden & Pet does not currently pay a dividend.

Dividend Growth

Central Garden & Pet does not have a long track record of dividend growth.

Sustainability and ESG

• Score: N/A
• Environmental Score: N/A

Percentage of Shares Shorted

1.42% of the outstanding shares of Central Garden & Pet have been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Central Garden & Pet has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 2.1, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Central Garden & Pet has recently increased by 2.86%, indicating that investor sentiment is decreasing.

News and Social Media

• Score: 1.8 / 5
• News Sentiment: 0.26

News Sentiment

Central Garden & Pet has a news sentiment score of 0.26. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This is a lower news sentiment than the 0.68 average news sentiment score of Consumer Discretionary companies.

News Coverage This Week

MarketBeat has tracked 8 news articles for Central Garden & Pet this week, compared to 4 articles on an average week.

Company Ownership

• Score: 3.3 / 5
• Insider Trading: Selling Shares

Insider Buying vs. Insider Selling

In the past three months, Central Garden & Pet insiders have sold more of their company's stock than they have bought. Specifically, they have bought $0.00 in company stock and sold $214,281.00 in company stock.

Percentage Held by Insiders

20.28% of the stock of Central Garden & Pet is held by insiders. A high percentage of insider ownership can be a sign of company health.

Percentage Held by Institutions

50.82% of the stock of Central Garden & Pet is held by institutions. High institutional ownership can be a signal of strong market trust in this company.

CENTA Stock Analysis - Frequently Asked Questions

How have CENTA shares performed this year?

Central Garden & Pet's stock was trading at $33.05 at the beginning of the year. Since then, CENTA shares have decreased by 19.2% and is now trading at $26.69.

How were Central Garden & Pet's earnings last quarter?

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August, 6th. The company reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $960.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $993.66 million. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 4.44% and a trailing twelve-month return on equity of 10.77%.

When did Central Garden & Pet's stock split?

Central Garden & Pet's stock split on the morning of Friday, February 9th 2024.The 5-4 split was announced on Friday, February 9th 2024. The newly minted shares were payable to shareholders after the closing bell on Friday, February 9th 2024. An investor that had 100 shares of stock prior to the split would have 125 shares after the split.

Who are Central Garden & Pet's major shareholders?

Top institutional shareholders of Central Garden & Pet include Yousif Capital Management LLC (0.03%), Voya Investment Management LLC (0.02%) and Brighton Jones LLC (0.02%). Insiders that own company stock include William E Brown, Nicholas Lahanas, Howard Machek, Brooks Pennington III, John Edward Hanson and John Ranelli.
View institutional ownership trends.

How do I buy shares of Central Garden & Pet?

Shares of CENTA stock can be purchased through any online brokerage account. Popular online brokerages with access to the U.S. stock market include Charles Schwab, E*TRADE, Fidelity, and Vanguard Brokerage Services.

Company Calendar

• Last Earnings: 8/06/2025
• Today: 10/14/2025
• Next Earnings (Estimated): 11/24/2025
• Fiscal Year End: 9/30/2026

Industry, Sector and Symbol

• Stock Exchange: NASDAQ
• Sector: Consumer Discretionary
• Industry: CONSM PD - MISC DIS
• Sub-Industry: Household Products
• Current Symbol: NASDAQ:CENTA
• CIK: 887733
• Web: www.central.com
• Phone: (925) 948-4000
• Fax: N/A
• Employees: 7,000
• Year Founded: 1980

Price Target and Rating

• Average Price Target for Central Garden & Pet: $38.67
• High Price Target: $50.00
• Low Price Target: $31.00
• Potential Upside/Downside: +44.9%
• Consensus Rating: Hold
• Rating Score (0-4): 2.17
• Research Coverage: 6 Analysts

Profitability

• EPS (Trailing Twelve Months): $2.20
• Trailing P/E Ratio: 12.13
• Forward P/E Ratio: 11.21
• P/E Growth: N/A
• Net Income: $107.98 million
• Net Margins: 4.44%
• Pretax Margin: 5.95%
• Return on Equity: 10.77%
• Return on Assets: 4.65%

Debt

• Debt-to-Equity Ratio: 0.75
• Current Ratio: 3.56
• Quick Ratio: 2.28

Sales & Book Value

• Annual Sales: $3.20 billion
• Price / Sales: 0.52
• Cash Flow: $3.76 per share
• Price / Cash Flow: 7.09
• Book Value: $23.20 per share
• Price / Book: 1.15

Miscellaneous

• Outstanding Shares: 62,870,000
• Free Float: 50,121,000
• Market Cap: $1.68 billion
• Optionable: Optionable
• Beta: 0.63