Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) CEO William Cyr Sells 40,965 Shares

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) CEO William Cyr sold 40,965 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.98, for a total value of $3,112,520.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 331,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,172,857.82. This represents a 11.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Freshpet Price Performance

Freshpet stock traded down $1.15 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $75.40. 987,101 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,496,928. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.84 and a beta of 1.61. The business’s 50-day moving average is $61.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 5.03 and a current ratio of 6.05. Freshpet, Inc. has a 12 month low of $46.45 and a 12 month high of $86.00.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.17. Freshpet had a return on equity of 5.97% and a net margin of 17.28%.The business had revenue of $305.59 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $292.35 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.33 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Freshpet

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in shares of Freshpet in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $840,000. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in Freshpet by 5,652.9% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 3,420,979 shares of the company’s stock worth $202,248,000 after purchasing an additional 3,361,514 shares during the last quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Freshpet by 41.9% in the second quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 18,975 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,122,000 after acquiring an additional 5,600 shares during the period. Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Freshpet by 19.4% in the 2nd quarter. Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC now owns 26,103 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,543,000 after purchasing an additional 4,244 shares during the period. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. boosted its position in Freshpet by 146.5% during the second quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 552,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,658,000 after acquiring an additional 328,259 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on FRPT. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Freshpet from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Freshpet in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.31.

Freshpet Company 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.