Ironwood Investment Management LLC Raises Stake in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Ironwood Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,132 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 332 shares during the period. Freshpet accounts for 2.7% of Ironwood Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Ironwood Investment Management LLC owned about 0.08% of Freshpet worth $5,500,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Swiss National Bank grew its stake in Freshpet by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 90,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,426,000 after buying an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 36.6% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 7,945 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,177,000 after acquiring an additional 2,128 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in shares of Freshpet by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 12,667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,876,000 after purchasing an additional 1,754 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC raised its stake in shares of Freshpet by 145.3% during the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 3,630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $538,000 after purchasing an additional 2,150 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in Freshpet by 13.6% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $634,000 after purchasing an additional 514 shares during the period.

Freshpet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FRPT opened at $87.84 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $131.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $139.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 4.72 and a quick ratio of 3.91. The company has a market capitalization of $4.28 billion, a PE ratio of 93.45 and a beta of 1.58. Freshpet, Inc. has a 1-year low of $80.27 and a 1-year high of $164.07.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on FRPT. Oppenheimer cut shares of Freshpet from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 price target (down from $170.00) on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Freshpet from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company 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, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Freshpet from $154.00 to $102.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 10th. One investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Freshpet presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $151.67.

Freshpet Company Profile

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.