Arizona State Retirement System Boosts Stock Holdings in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 3.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,806 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 474 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Freshpet were worth $1,111,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in Freshpet during the 4th quarter worth $1,200,000. Trust Point Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Freshpet during the 4th quarter worth $963,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Freshpet by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 2,740,708 shares of the company’s stock worth $180,558,000 after purchasing an additional 110,383 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp Et Al bought a new stake in shares of Freshpet during the 3rd quarter worth $5,621,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Freshpet by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,118,646 shares of the company’s stock worth $139,576,000 after purchasing an additional 17,678 shares during the period.

Freshpet Stock Down 2.7 %

FRPT stock opened at $105.69 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 4.08, a current ratio of 4.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.10 billion, a PE ratio of -148.86 and a beta of 1.23. Freshpet, Inc. has a twelve month low of $54.60 and a twelve month high of $117.76. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.87.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.22. Freshpet had a negative return on equity of 3.56% and a negative net margin of 4.38%. The business had revenue of $215.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $204.93 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.06) EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 29.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Freshpet

In other news, COO Scott James Morris sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.02, for a total transaction of $280,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 122,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,709,007.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Freshpet news, COO Scott James Morris sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.02, for a total value of $280,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 122,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,709,007.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 7,130 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.53, for a total value of $773,818.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,056 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,231,127.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,762 shares of company stock valued at $1,737,280. 3.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Freshpet from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. TheStreet upgraded Freshpet from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 21st. Citigroup assumed coverage on Freshpet in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $94.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Freshpet from $67.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Freshpet to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $107.36.

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.