Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Has $7.90 Million Stock Position in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 89.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 90,997 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 42,973 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Freshpet were worth $7,895,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Freshpet by 63.1% during the first quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 2,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $306,000 after acquiring an additional 1,154 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 129.9% during the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 7,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $790,000 after purchasing an additional 4,233 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. boosted its position in shares of Freshpet by 155.2% during the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 18,953 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,944,000 after purchasing an additional 11,527 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of Freshpet by 104.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 20,798 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,203,000 after buying an additional 10,601 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Freshpet in the 1st quarter valued at about $271,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Freshpet to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, December 30th. Citigroup initiated coverage on Freshpet in a report on Thursday, February 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $94.00 target price on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Freshpet from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective 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. Finally, TheStreet raised shares of Freshpet from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Freshpet presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $107.36.

Freshpet Stock Performance

FRPT stock opened at $105.15 on Thursday. 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 cap of $5.08 billion, a PE ratio of -148.10 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50 day moving average of $105.78 and a 200-day moving average of $85.15. Freshpet, Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.60 and a 12-month high of $117.76.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Freshpet news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 7,130 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.53, for a total value of $773,818.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,056 shares in the company, valued at $9,231,127.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Freshpet news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 7,130 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,056 shares in the company, valued at $9,231,127.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Scott James Morris sold 3,632 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.86, for a total value of $399,011.52. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 122,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,444,666.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,762 shares of company stock worth $1,737,280. Insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Freshpet 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.