26,103 Shares in Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT Bought by Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC

Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 26,103 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,543,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in shares of Freshpet by 606.8% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 417 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in Freshpet in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new position in Freshpet in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 55.0% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 555 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 1,388.2% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 472 shares during the last quarter.

Freshpet Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of Freshpet stock opened at $72.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 6.05 and a quick ratio of 5.03. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $62.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.89. The stock has a market cap of $3.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.15 and a beta of 1.61. Freshpet, Inc. has a 1-year low of $46.45 and a 1-year high of $86.00.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.17. Freshpet had a return on equity of 5.97% and a net margin of 17.28%.The firm had revenue of $305.59 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $292.35 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.33 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Freshpet

In other Freshpet news, CEO William B. Cyr sold 2,995 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.03, for a total value of $221,719.85. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 45,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,363,330.96. This trade represents a 6.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders sold 131,972 shares of company stock valued at $9,791,213. 4.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FRPT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Bank of America dropped their price target on Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings lowered Freshpet from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Freshpet from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.31.

Freshpet 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.