Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Given New $93.00 Price Target at Benchmark

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) had its price target upped by research analysts at Benchmark from $90.00 to $93.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Benchmark’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 44.95% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on FRPT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Freshpet from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Morgan Stanley raised Freshpet from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $71.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Bank of America increased their target price on Freshpet from $60.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Freshpet presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.88.

Freshpet Price Performance

NASDAQ:FRPT traded down $0.38 on Monday, reaching $64.16. The stock had a trading volume of 280,704 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,401,669. The company has a quick ratio of 4.57, a current ratio of 5.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market capitalization of $3.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.66. Freshpet has a 1-year low of $46.76 and a 1-year high of $89.80. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $72.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $62.09.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.21. Freshpet had a net margin of 12.63% and a return on equity of 6.93%. The company had revenue of $285.23 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $285.66 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.36 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Freshpet will post 1.55 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freshpet

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of Freshpet by 86.3% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 67,623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,624,000 after acquiring an additional 31,334 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in Freshpet by 734.1% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 1,593 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association bought a new stake in Freshpet during the 1st quarter worth about $247,000. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its position in Freshpet by 7.8% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 12,523 shares of the company’s stock valued at $851,000 after purchasing an additional 908 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in Freshpet by 211.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 25,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,753,000 after purchasing an additional 17,519 shares during the period.

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.