Wasatch Advisors LP Decreases Holdings in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Wasatch Advisors LP lowered its position in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 5.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,630,187 shares of the company’s stock after selling 144,166 shares during the quarter. Freshpet makes up approximately 1.6% of Wasatch Advisors LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Wasatch Advisors LP owned about 5.45% of Freshpet worth $304,733,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FRPT. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Freshpet by 100.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 263 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Freshpet during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Freshpet during the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 617.3% in the fourth quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 581 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Freshpet by 96.6% in the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,750 shares of the company’s stock valued at $153,000 after acquiring an additional 860 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on FRPT. Truist Financial upgraded Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $120.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Freshpet from $128.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of Freshpet to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 4th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their target price on Freshpet from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. One 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, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 have sold 13,560 shares of company stock worth $1,701,580 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Freshpet Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FRPT traded up $3.36 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $132.36. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 491,572 shares, compared to its average volume of 604,183. The company has a quick ratio of 4.09, a current ratio of 4.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $124.27 and a 200-day moving average of $107.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 735.37 and a beta of 1.36. Freshpet, Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.60 and a 12-month high of $132.84.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 6th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.22) by $0.43. Freshpet had a net margin of 1.19% and a return on equity of 0.20%. The business had revenue of $223.85 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $216.43 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.54 earnings per share for the current year.

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.