Lisanti Capital Growth LLC Makes New Investment in Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT

Lisanti Capital Growth LLC bought a new position in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 70,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,041,000. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC owned 0.14% of Freshpet as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Freshpet by 11.8% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,829,688 shares of the company’s stock valued at $167,291,000 after purchasing an additional 298,460 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Freshpet in the second quarter valued at about $107,066,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Freshpet by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 917,785 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,103,000 after buying an additional 78,196 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in Freshpet by 200.6% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 651,202 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,395,000 after acquiring an additional 434,582 shares during the period. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 146.5% during the 2nd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 552,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,658,000 after purchasing an additional 328,259 shares during the period.

Insider Activity at Freshpet

In other Freshpet news, Director Walter George bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $64.92 per share, with a total value of $64,920.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 51,746 shares in the company, valued at $3,359,350.32. This trade represents a 1.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO William Cyr sold 41,022 shares of Freshpet stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.86, for a total value of $2,988,862.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 267,152 shares in the company, valued at $19,464,694.72. This represents a 13.31% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 171,636 shares of company stock valued at $12,754,864 over the last quarter. 4.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Freshpet Trading Down 0.1%

FRPT opened at $64.52 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $64.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.83. The company has a market cap of $3.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.60 and a beta of 1.75. Freshpet, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.45 and a fifty-two week high of $86.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 5.68 and a quick ratio of 4.65.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.19. Freshpet had a return on equity of 6.39% and a net margin of 10.90%. The business had revenue of $317.84 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $312.02 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.86 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on FRPT. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Freshpet in a report on Monday, October 5th. Deutsche Bank set a $67.00 price target on Freshpet in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Wall Street Zen raised Freshpet from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson cut their price objective on Freshpet from $101.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $80.31.

About Freshpet

Freshpet, Inc. makes and markets fresh, refrigerated food and treats for dogs and cats. Founded in 2006, the company focuses on recipes made with fresh ingredients and positioned as an alternative to shelf-stable pet food. Its products are sold under brands including Freshpet, Freshpet Select, Vital and Nature’s Fresh. Freshpet distributes them through refrigerated displays in grocery, mass-market, club and pet specialty stores, as well as through online retailers. The company primarily serves customers in the United States and Canada and also sells its products in select international markets.