Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) COO Sells $399,011.52 in Stock

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) COO Scott James Morris sold 3,632 shares of Freshpet stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.86, for a total transaction of $399,011.52. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 122,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,444,666.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Scott James Morris also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, February 29th, Scott James Morris sold 2,500 shares of Freshpet stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.76, for a total transaction of $284,400.00.
• On Monday, March 4th, Scott James Morris sold 2,500 shares of Freshpet stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.02, for a total transaction of $280,050.00.

Freshpet Stock Down 3.5 %

Freshpet stock opened at $108.59 on Friday. Freshpet, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.60 and a fifty-two week high of $117.76. The stock has a market cap of $5.24 billion, a PE ratio of -152.94 and a beta of 1.23. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $105.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $84.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 4.08 and a current ratio of 4.79.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.22. Freshpet had a negative net margin of 4.38% and a negative return on equity of 3.56%. The business had revenue of $215.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $204.93 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.06) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on FRPT shares. Truist Financial raised shares of Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $120.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $94.00 price target for the company. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Freshpet from $104.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Freshpet from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Freshpet from $67.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $107.36.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FRPT. JANA Partners Management LP purchased a new position in Freshpet during the third quarter worth about $214,405,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 47.6% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,545,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $167,519,000 after purchasing an additional 820,482 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Freshpet during the fourth quarter worth about $35,691,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Freshpet during the fourth quarter worth about $40,327,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 28.4% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,075,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $137,344,000 after purchasing an additional 458,570 shares during the last quarter.

About Freshpet

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.