Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 7,322 Shares of Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System decreased its stake in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 44.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 9,188 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,322 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Freshpet were worth $506,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FRPT. Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its stake in shares of Freshpet by 2,378.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 3,123 shares of the company’s stock valued at $172,000 after acquiring an additional 2,997 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in Freshpet by 64.0% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 5,501 shares of the company’s stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 2,147 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Freshpet by 27.1% during the third quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 14,907 shares of the company’s stock valued at $822,000 after purchasing an additional 3,183 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of Freshpet by 77.5% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 16,020 shares of the company’s stock worth $883,000 after purchasing an additional 6,995 shares during the period. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS increased its stake in shares of Freshpet by 9.3% in the third quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 10,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $584,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares in the last quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Freshpet news, President Scott James Morris sold 63,135 shares of Freshpet stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.21, for a total value of $3,485,683.35. Following the sale, the president owned 160,476 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,859,879.96. The trade was a 28.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 4.43% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Freshpet Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FRPT opened at $72.60 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.71. Freshpet, Inc. has a 52-week low of $46.76 and a 52-week high of $164.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 4.61 and a current ratio of 5.52. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $61.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $59.58.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on FRPT shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $56.00 target price on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Zacks Research raised Freshpet from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Freshpet from $70.00 to $50.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on Freshpet from $60.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Freshpet has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $80.75.

Freshpet Profile

Freshpet Inc (NASDAQ: FRPT) is a leading pet food company specializing in fresh, refrigerated meals and treats for dogs and cats. The company’s products are formulated with carefully selected, natural ingredients and are designed to offer a higher level of nutrition and freshness than traditional dry or canned pet foods. Freshpet’s offerings include refrigerated rolls, pâtés and snacks, all of which are sold through the refrigerated section of grocery, mass-market and pet specialty stores.

Freshpet’s product portfolio is built around the concept of fresh, minimally processed recipes that do not require preservatives or artificial colors.