Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Position Lifted by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its holdings in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 9.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 35,572 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,121 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Freshpet were worth $3,086,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in Freshpet by 96.6% during the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,750 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after buying an additional 860 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in Freshpet by 36.6% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 915,827 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,457,000 after buying an additional 245,403 shares during the period. OLD National Bancorp IN acquired a new position in Freshpet during the 4th quarter valued at about $219,000. Cetera Trust Company N.A acquired a new position in Freshpet during the 4th quarter valued at about $290,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in Freshpet by 29.0% during the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 8,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $772,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the period.

Freshpet Stock Performance

Shares of FRPT opened at $106.36 on Friday. Freshpet, Inc. has a one year low of $54.60 and a one year high of $117.76. The company has a 50-day moving average of $108.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $86.94. The stock has a market cap of $5.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -149.80 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 4.79 and a quick ratio of 4.08.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.22. Freshpet had a negative net margin of 4.38% and a negative return on equity of 3.56%. The company had revenue of $215.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $204.93 million. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.06) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on FRPT shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Freshpet to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Freshpet from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $104.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Freshpet currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $107.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Freshpet news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 7,130 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.53, for a total value of $773,818.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,056 shares in the company, valued at $9,231,127.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Freshpet news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 7,130 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.53, for a total value of $773,818.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,056 shares in the company, valued at $9,231,127.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Scott James Morris sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.02, for a total transaction of $280,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 122,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,709,007.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,762 shares of company stock worth $1,737,280 over the last ninety days. 3.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.