Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Shares Sold by Eagle Asset Management Inc.

Eagle Asset Management Inc. lowered its holdings in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 16.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 656,153 shares of the company’s stock after selling 125,007 shares during the quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. owned 1.35% of Freshpet worth $89,742,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of FRPT. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet in the first quarter valued at $811,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet in the second quarter valued at $3,964,000. Geneva Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Freshpet by 166.2% in the third quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 84,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,519,000 after buying an additional 52,584 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet in the second quarter valued at $4,299,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Freshpet by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,666,407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $540,650,000 after buying an additional 13,709 shares in the last quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 2,178 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.01, for a total value of $304,941.78. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 86,039 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,046,320.39. The trade was a 2.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Thembeka Machaba sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.85, for a total value of $384,625.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Freshpet Stock Performance

Freshpet stock opened at $156.57 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $141.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $133.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.60 billion, a PE ratio of 175.92 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 3.91 and a current ratio of 4.72. Freshpet, Inc. has a one year low of $68.22 and a one year high of $159.12.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.10. Freshpet had a return on equity of 3.67% and a net margin of 4.75%. The company had revenue of $253.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $248.36 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.15) EPS. Freshpet’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FRPT. Truist Financial raised their price target on Freshpet from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Freshpet from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Freshpet from $157.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Freshpet from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $157.80.

Freshpet 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.