Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Shares Purchased by Petrus Trust Company LTA

Petrus Trust Company LTA raised its holdings in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 54.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,036 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,487 shares during the period. Petrus Trust Company LTA’s holdings in Freshpet were worth $962,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Freshpet by 41.1% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 371 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA increased its stake in Freshpet by 3.2% in the third quarter. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA now owns 3,580 shares of the company’s stock valued at $490,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Freshpet by 23.0% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 739 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Freshpet by 13.9% during the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,305 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 2,740 shares of the company’s stock valued at $355,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter.

Freshpet Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FRPT opened at $156.49 on Wednesday. Freshpet, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $71.22 and a fifty-two week high of $160.91. The company has a quick ratio of 3.91, a current ratio of 4.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $144.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $135.19. The company has a market cap of $7.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 175.83 and a beta of 1.41.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $253.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $248.36 million. Freshpet had a return on equity of 3.67% and a net margin of 4.75%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($0.15) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on FRPT. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Freshpet from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Freshpet from $157.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Freshpet from $161.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Freshpet from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $157.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 2,178 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.01, for a total transaction of $304,941.78. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 86,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,046,320.39. The trade was a 2.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, President Scott James Morris sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.13, for a total transaction of $790,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 122,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,351,949.40. This trade represents a 3.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,678 shares of company stock valued at $1,480,217 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

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.