Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

FRPT has been the topic of several other research reports. Stifel Nicolaus set a $66.00 price target on Freshpet in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Freshpet from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Freshpet from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $66.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Monday, June 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Freshpet has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.25.

Freshpet Price Performance

Shares of FRPT stock opened at $57.54 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $53.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $62.62. Freshpet has a one year low of $46.45 and a one year high of $86.00. The firm has a market cap of $2.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.39 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 6.18 and a quick ratio of 5.26.

Insider Transactions at Freshpet

In other Freshpet news, Director Craig D. Steeneck bought 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $47.83 per share, for a total transaction of $95,660.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 37,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,793,625. This trade represents a 5.63% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO William B. Cyr sold 42,495 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.03, for a total transaction of $2,168,519.85. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 224,459 shares in the company, valued at $11,454,142.77. This represents a 15.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders acquired 4,211 shares of company stock valued at $215,027 and sold 235,262 shares valued at $11,664,591. Insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freshpet

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Freshpet by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,281,833 shares of the company’s stock valued at $321,822,000 after acquiring an additional 128,499 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its stake in Freshpet by 5.2% in the first quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 4,141,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $244,179,000 after purchasing an additional 204,128 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Freshpet by 30.9% in the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,952,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $118,982,000 after purchasing an additional 461,444 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in Freshpet by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,587,691 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,738,000 after purchasing an additional 104,913 shares during the period. Finally, Armistice Capital LLC lifted its position in Freshpet by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 1,296,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $78,965,000 after purchasing an additional 61,198 shares during the period.

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.