Legal & General Group Plc Buys New Position in Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT

Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 109,317 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,463,000. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.22% of Freshpet as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised 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 valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet during the second quarter worth $25,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet in the second quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Freshpet by 1,388.2% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 472 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FRPT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Bank of America lowered their target price on Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their price target on Freshpet from $101.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $75.31.

Freshpet Stock Performance

Shares of FRPT opened at $70.76 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.48 billion, a PE ratio of 18.62 and a beta of 1.66. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $63.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $62.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 6.05 and a quick ratio of 5.03. Freshpet, Inc. has a 12-month low of $46.45 and a 12-month high of $86.00.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $305.59 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $292.35 million. Freshpet had a net margin of 17.28% and a return on equity of 5.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.33 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.73 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Freshpet

In related news, CEO William B. Cyr sold 2,657 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.40, for a total transaction of $200,337.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 49,044 shares in the company, valued at $3,697,917.60. This represents a 5.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 171,636 shares of company stock worth $12,754,864. 4.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.