Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Trading 2% Higher – Time to Buy?

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) shares shot up 2% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $88.29 and last traded at $85.48. 334,982 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 1,270,736 shares. The stock had previously closed at $83.78.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on FRPT shares. Citigroup dropped their target price on Freshpet from $155.00 to $142.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Oppenheimer cut shares of Freshpet from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Freshpet from $170.00 to $142.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com lowered Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $140.00 price target (down previously from $170.00) on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Freshpet presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.67.

Freshpet Trading Up 3.1 %

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $134.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $140.31. The firm has a market cap of $4.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 91.81 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 3.91, a current ratio of 4.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36. The firm had revenue of $262.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $275.46 million. Freshpet had a return on equity of 3.92% and a net margin of 4.81%. As a group, research analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Freshpet

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FRPT. Atria Investments Inc raised its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 5,049 shares of the company’s stock valued at $691,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Versor Investments LP bought a new position in Freshpet in the third quarter worth approximately $300,000. Entropy Technologies LP lifted its holdings in Freshpet by 34.3% during the third quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 4,309 shares of the company’s stock worth $589,000 after buying an additional 1,101 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. boosted its position in Freshpet by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 51,331 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,021,000 after acquiring an additional 1,318 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Freshpet during the 3rd quarter valued at $77,000.

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.