Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Sells 2,200 Shares of Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System decreased its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,100 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,200 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Central Garden & Pet were worth $788,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CENTA. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 30.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,636,319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $208,093,000 after purchasing an additional 1,306,309 shares during the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 24.8% in the first quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,303,369 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,040,000 after purchasing an additional 457,699 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 43.0% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 941,509 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,098,000 after buying an additional 283,045 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Central Garden & Pet by 24.9% during the 1st quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,090,060 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,245,000 after buying an additional 217,006 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 85.8% during the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 439,066 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,502,000 after buying an additional 202,761 shares during the last quarter. 50.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on CENTA shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Central Garden & Pet has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $41.33.

Central Garden & Pet Price Performance

Shares of CENTA opened at $30.03 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.82 and a beta of 0.73. Central Garden & Pet has a 1 year low of $27.70 and a 1 year high of $41.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 3.66 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The business has a 50-day moving average of $31.29 and a 200-day moving average of $33.71.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 4.42%. The business had revenue of $996.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.40 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Central Garden & Pet news, Director Brooks Pennington III sold 1,486 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.80, for a total transaction of $48,740.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 40,743 shares in the company, valued at $1,336,370.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Brooks Pennington III sold 1,486 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.80, for a total transaction of $48,740.80. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 40,743 shares in the company, valued at $1,336,370.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman William E. Brown sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.54, for a total transaction of $2,012,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,125,773 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,758,426.42. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 63,986 shares of company stock valued at $2,146,841 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 20.28% of the company’s stock.

Central Garden & Pet Company Profile

Central Garden & Pet Company produces and distributes various products for the lawn and garden, and pet supplies markets in the United States. It operates through two segments: Pet and Garden. The Pet segment provides dog and cat supplies, such as dog treats and chews, toys, pet beds and containment, grooming products, waste management, and training pads; supplies for aquatics, small animals, reptiles, and pet birds, including toys, cages and habitats, bedding, and food and supplements; products for equine and livestock; animal and household health and insect control products; aquariums and terrariums, including fixtures and stands, water conditioners and supplements, water pumps and filters, and lighting systems and accessories; and live fish and small animals, as well as outdoor cushions.