Victory Capital Management Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Central Garden & Pet Company $CENTA

Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) by 5.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,217,545 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 115,706 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Central Garden & Pet were worth $65,484,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 164.0% during the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 858 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 533 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 444.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,001 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 817 shares during the last quarter. EMC Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Central Garden & Pet in the second quarter worth approximately $87,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 239.5% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,220 shares of the company’s stock valued at $195,000 after buying an additional 4,388 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in Central Garden & Pet in the second quarter worth approximately $214,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.82% of the company’s stock.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of CENTA opened at $32.91 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 3.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Central Garden & Pet Company has a 52-week low of $25.97 and a 52-week high of $37.35. The company has a market cap of $2.05 billion, a PE ratio of 13.43 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a fifty day moving average of $31.51 and a 200 day moving average of $30.55.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $617.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $636.62 million. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 10.99% and a net margin of 5.04%.Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.38 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Central Garden & Pet from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. CJS Securities raised shares of Central Garden & Pet to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $28.00 price target (down from $31.00) on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a research report on Friday, January 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.75.

Insider Transactions at Central Garden & Pet

In other news, Director John Ranelli sold 3,668 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.50, for a total value of $126,546.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 646 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,287. The trade was a 85.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Brendan Dougher sold 3,250 shares of Central Garden & Pet stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.38, for a total transaction of $108,485.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $428,766.10. The trade was a 20.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 20.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet Co is a leading producer, marketer and distributor of branded consumable gardening products and pet supplies in North America. Headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, the company serves both retail and wholesale customers through a network of distribution centers across the United States and Canada. Operating under the ticker symbol CENTA on the NASDAQ exchange, Central Garden & Pet has been publicly traded since 2003.

The company’s Garden segment offers a broad portfolio of lawn and garden care solutions, including fertilizers, weed and pest control products, soil and mulch, and plant care accessories.