Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) CEO Sells $2,087,638.80 in Stock

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) CEO William Cyr sold 42,692 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.90, for a total value of $2,087,638.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 185,123 shares in the company, valued at $9,052,514.70. This represents a 18.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Freshpet Trading Down 2.2%

FRPT traded down $1.06 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $47.39. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,616,492 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,512,846. Freshpet, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.76 and a fifty-two week high of $89.80. The stock has a market cap of $2.33 billion, a PE ratio of 12.67 and a beta of 1.73. The business’s 50-day moving average is $63.76 and its 200-day moving average is $64.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 6.18 and a quick ratio of 5.26.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.21. Freshpet had a return on equity of 6.22% and a net margin of 17.63%.The firm had revenue of $285.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $285.66 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.36 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on FRPT. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Freshpet from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 10th. Benchmark upped their price objective on Freshpet from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $66.00 target price on Freshpet in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, TD Cowen raised Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Freshpet currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.88.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freshpet

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in Freshpet by 606.8% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 417 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new position in Freshpet in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in Freshpet in the second quarter valued at $34,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in Freshpet by 143.0% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 503 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Freshpet by 1,388.2% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 472 shares during the last quarter.

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.