Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Given “Overweight” Rating at Piper Sandler

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT)‘s stock had its “overweight” rating reissued by research analysts at Piper Sandler in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $150.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler’s price target points to a potential upside of 14.84% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Freshpet from $124.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Freshpet from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $168.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Freshpet from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Freshpet in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $150.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Benchmark raised their price target on Freshpet from $125.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Freshpet has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $130.25.

Freshpet Price Performance

Shares of Freshpet stock traded up $1.62 on Tuesday, hitting $130.62. 140,306 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 601,395. Freshpet has a 12-month low of $54.60 and a 12-month high of $132.84. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $123.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $106.66. The company has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 728.71 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 4.97, a quick ratio of 4.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The company reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.22) by $0.43. Freshpet had a net margin of 1.19% and a return on equity of 0.20%. The firm had revenue of $223.85 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $216.43 million. Analysts expect that Freshpet will post 0.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Freshpet

In other Freshpet news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 6,548 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.15, for a total value of $786,742.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 86,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,337,585.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 13,560 shares of company stock valued at $1,701,580 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FRPT. JANA Partners Management LP bought a new position in shares of Freshpet during the third quarter valued at $214,405,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Freshpet in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,327,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in Freshpet by 36.6% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 915,827 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,457,000 after purchasing an additional 245,403 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Freshpet by 211.6% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 345,810 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,002,000 after buying an additional 234,836 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its stake in shares of Freshpet by 3,434.5% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 226,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,635,000 after buying an additional 219,913 shares during the last quarter.

About Freshpet

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.