Bessemer Group Inc. Buys 6,205 Shares of Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT

Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 43.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 20,388 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,205 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings in Freshpet were worth $1,384,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Freshpet by 12.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,223,695 shares of the company’s stock worth $434,455,000 after purchasing an additional 571,139 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,616,205 shares of the company’s stock worth $217,590,000 after buying an additional 196,882 shares during the period. Champlain Investment Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Freshpet by 9.6% during the 1st quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,815,884 shares of the company’s stock worth $151,027,000 after buying an additional 158,416 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Freshpet by 20.6% during 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 buying an additional 260,868 shares during the period. Finally, Riverbridge Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Freshpet by 23.2% during the second quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC now owns 1,264,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,967,000 after buying an additional 238,130 shares during the period.

Freshpet Price Performance

NASDAQ FRPT opened at $50.60 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $53.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.66. The company has a current ratio of 4.81, a quick ratio of 3.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Freshpet, Inc. has a 12-month low of $46.76 and a 12-month high of $164.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 75.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.74.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $264.69 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $269.75 million. Freshpet had a return on equity of 4.82% and a net margin of 3.23%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.03) EPS. Freshpet has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Analysts forecast that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Freshpet

In other Freshpet news, Director Walter N. George purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $52.57 per share, for a total transaction of $52,570.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 46,527 shares in the company, valued at $2,445,924.39. This represents a 2.20% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Jacki Sue Kelley purchased 814 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 9th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $56.50 per share, for a total transaction of $45,991.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 11,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $672,745.50. The trade was a 7.34% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders acquired 6,008 shares of company stock worth $332,305. 4.43% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FRPT. DA Davidson set a $101.00 price objective on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Freshpet from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on Freshpet from $65.00 to $48.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Freshpet currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $101.13.

Freshpet Company Profile

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.