Fisher Asset Management LLC Sells 40,178 Shares of Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT

Fisher Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 12.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 284,937 shares of the company’s stock after selling 40,178 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned about 0.58% of Freshpet worth $19,364,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 12.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,223,695 shares of the company’s stock worth $434,455,000 after buying an additional 571,139 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Freshpet by 8.1% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,616,205 shares of the company’s stock worth $217,590,000 after acquiring an additional 196,882 shares in the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 41.5% in the second quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,568,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $174,586,000 after acquiring an additional 753,070 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Freshpet by 20.6% in the second quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,527,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,780,000 after purchasing an additional 260,868 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Riverbridge Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Freshpet by 23.2% in the second quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,264,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,967,000 after purchasing an additional 238,130 shares in the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Freshpet from $88.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $60.00 price objective (down previously from $81.00) on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group set a $48.00 target price on shares of Freshpet and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Freshpet from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $56.00 price target on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $84.43.

Freshpet Trading Up 6.9%

Shares of FRPT opened at $62.18 on Thursday. Freshpet, Inc. has a 1-year low of $46.76 and a 1-year high of $164.07. The company has a market capitalization of $3.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 5.52 and a quick ratio of 4.61. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $53.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $62.82.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The company reported $1.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $1.43. Freshpet had a net margin of 11.44% and a return on equity of 5.73%. The firm had revenue of $288.85 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $283.73 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.24 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Freshpet

In other news, Director Jacki Sue Kelley bought 814 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was bought at an average price of $56.50 per share, for a total transaction of $45,991.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $672,745.50. This represents a 7.34% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy R. Mclevish bought 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $56.00 per share, with a total value of $196,000.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 35,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,976,240. This represents a 11.01% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders bought 6,008 shares of company stock worth $332,305. 4.43% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.