Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Central Garden & Pet from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.00.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of CENTA stock opened at $37.76 on Monday. Central Garden & Pet has a 1 year low of $25.97 and a 1 year high of $38.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 3.45 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $34.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.44. The company has a market cap of $2.36 billion, a PE ratio of 13.73 and a beta of 0.59.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.21. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 5.42%.The business had revenue of $906.15 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $846.58 million. Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS. Research analysts predict that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Central Garden & Pet

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CENTA. LSV Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 53.4% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,123,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,984,000 after buying an additional 738,860 shares during the period. Invenomic Capital Management LP bought a new position in Central Garden & Pet in the fourth quarter worth approximately $13,749,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 181.2% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 549,355 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,222,000 after purchasing an additional 354,016 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 168.5% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 292,197 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,529,000 after purchasing an additional 183,363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP grew its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 1,109.1% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 196,777 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,811,000 after purchasing an additional 180,503 shares in the last quarter. 50.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Central Garden & Pet Company Profile

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.