Freshpet’s (FRPT) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at Benchmark

Benchmark reiterated their buy rating on shares of Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) in a report released on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $95.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $120.00.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on FRPT. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Freshpet from $125.00 to $115.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $91.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $90.00 target price on shares of Freshpet and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Monday, June 16th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $65.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Freshpet from $100.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Freshpet presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $116.64.

Freshpet Stock Performance

NASDAQ FRPT opened at $63.98 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $72.11 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $89.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 4.81 and a quick ratio of 3.92. Freshpet has a 1 year low of $63.61 and a 1 year high of $164.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.12 billion, a PE ratio of 95.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.77.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.21. Freshpet had a net margin of 3.23% and a return on equity of 4.82%. The firm had revenue of $264.69 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $269.75 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.03) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Freshpet will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Freshpet

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FRPT. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 31.5% in the second quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 83,740 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,691,000 after buying an additional 20,036 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT grew its position in Freshpet by 6.3% during the 2nd quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 18,060 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,227,000 after acquiring an additional 1,069 shares during the last quarter. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Freshpet by 52.2% in the 2nd quarter. Pier 88 Investment Partners LLC now owns 18,320 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,245,000 after purchasing an additional 6,280 shares during the period. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC lifted its position in Freshpet by 2.5% in the second quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 21,027 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,429,000 after purchasing an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Trust Company N.A lifted its position in Freshpet by 11.0% in the second quarter. Cetera Trust Company N.A now owns 3,375 shares of the company’s stock valued at $229,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the last quarter.

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.