Martin & Co. Inc. TN Trims Holdings in Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT)

Martin & Co. Inc. TN reduced its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 70,797 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,405 shares during the quarter. Martin & Co. Inc. TN owned 0.11% of Central Garden & Pet worth $2,747,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 0.9% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 893,226 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,576,000 after purchasing an additional 7,893 shares during the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 1.7% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 148,910 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,431,000 after buying an additional 2,450 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 11.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 112,305 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,096,000 after buying an additional 11,671 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 53,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,070,000 after buying an additional 2,141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 48,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,878,000 after buying an additional 2,297 shares during the last quarter. 16.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of CENT opened at $38.75 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $38.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $37.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.29 and a beta of 0.79. Central Garden & Pet has a 1-year low of $32.17 and a 1-year high of $47.48. The company has a current ratio of 3.47, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.24. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 10.08% and a net margin of 3.77%. Analysts expect that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CENT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Argus cut Central Garden & Pet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price target on Central Garden & Pet from $48.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $46.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider John D. Walker III sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.86, for a total transaction of $328,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 67,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,205,267.46. The trade was a 12.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 8.19% of the company’s stock.

Central Garden & Pet Company Profile

Central Garden & Pet Co engages in the production and distribution of branded and private label products for the lawn, garden, and pet supplies markets. It operates through the Pet and Garden segments. The Pet segment focuses on dog and cat supplies such as dog treats and chews, toys, pet beds and containment, grooming products, waste management and training pads, supplies for aquatics, small animals, reptiles and pet birds including toys, cages and habitats, bedding, food and supplements, products for equine and livestock, animal and household health and insect control products, live fish and small animals as well as outdoor cushions.