Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Receives $74.88 Average Target Price from Analysts

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $74.8750.

FRPT has been the topic of several research reports. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Freshpet from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, March 20th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $66.00 price objective on shares of Freshpet in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Benchmark upped their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd.

Freshpet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FRPT opened at $49.74 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $57.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $63.93. Freshpet has a 1-year low of $46.45 and a 1-year high of $86.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.30 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a current ratio of 6.18, a quick ratio of 5.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO William B. Cyr sold 42,907 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.92, for a total value of $2,056,103.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 204,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,803,713.20. This trade represents a 17.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 4,211 shares of company stock valued at $215,027 and have sold 235,262 shares valued at $11,664,591. Insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freshpet

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FRPT. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its position in Freshpet by 41.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,839,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,921,000 after acquiring an additional 1,116,217 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Freshpet by 1,031.9% in the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 931,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,781,000 after buying an additional 1,031,905 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its stake in Freshpet by 151.8% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,482,778 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,716,000 after buying an additional 893,949 shares during the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp purchased a new stake in Freshpet in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,862,000. Finally, Armistice Capital LLC increased its stake in Freshpet by 118.4% in the 3rd quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 1,234,802 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,050,000 after buying an additional 669,399 shares during the last quarter.

About Freshpet

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.