Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Director Walter George Buys 2,000 Shares

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Director Walter George bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $54.67 per share, for a total transaction of $109,340.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 50,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,774,283.82. This trade represents a 4.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Freshpet Trading Down 6.5%

NASDAQ FRPT traded down $3.44 on Monday, reaching $49.64. The stock had a trading volume of 1,888,267 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,491,963. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.27 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a quick ratio of 5.26, a current ratio of 6.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Freshpet, Inc. has a 12-month low of $46.76 and a 12-month high of $89.80. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $68.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $64.53.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.21. Freshpet had a return on equity of 6.22% and a net margin of 17.63%.The company had revenue of $285.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $285.66 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.36 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freshpet

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FRPT. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Freshpet by 86.3% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 67,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,624,000 after purchasing an additional 31,334 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of Freshpet by 734.1% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 1,593 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet during the first quarter worth $247,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Freshpet by 1,388.2% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 472 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cresset Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Freshpet by 140.3% in the second quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 6,296 shares of the company’s stock valued at $428,000 after acquiring an additional 3,676 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on FRPT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Freshpet from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $66.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Thursday. Benchmark upped their price objective on Freshpet from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $63.00 price objective on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Thursday. TD Cowen raised Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Freshpet has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.88.

Freshpet Company Profile

Freshpet Inc (NASDAQ: FRPT) is a leading pet food company specializing in fresh, refrigerated meals and treats for dogs and cats. The company’s products are formulated with carefully selected, natural ingredients and are designed to offer a higher level of nutrition and freshness than traditional dry or canned pet foods. Freshpet’s offerings include refrigerated rolls, pâtés and snacks, all of which are sold through the refrigerated section of grocery, mass-market and pet specialty stores.

Freshpet’s product portfolio is built around the concept of fresh, minimally processed recipes that do not require preservatives or artificial colors.