Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Trading Up 1% – Still a Buy?

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)’s share price traded up 1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $87.33 and last traded at $87.27. 122,536 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 697,402 shares. The stock had previously closed at $86.42.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Citigroup cut their price target on Freshpet from $155.00 to $142.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Oppenheimer downgraded Freshpet from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 price target (down previously from $170.00) on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Freshpet from $155.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.67.

Freshpet Trading Up 0.3 %

The stock has a market cap of $4.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 92.17 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 3.91 and a current ratio of 4.72. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $124.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $137.53.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36. The firm had revenue of $262.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $275.46 million. Freshpet had a return on equity of 3.92% and a net margin of 4.81%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Freshpet

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Elequin Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 302.0% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 130.9% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 217 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000.

Freshpet Company Profile

Freshpet, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, and markets natural fresh meals and treats for dogs and cats in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It sells dog food, cat food, and dog treats under the Freshpet brand name; and Dognation and Dog Joy labels through various classes of retail, including grocery, mass, club, pet specialty, and natural, as well as online.