Systematic Financial Management LP Acquires 16,095 Shares of Central Garden & Pet Company $CENTA

Systematic Financial Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) by 320.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 21,125 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,095 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP’s holdings in Central Garden & Pet were worth $617,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CENTA. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 164.0% during the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 858 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in Central Garden & Pet during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 444.0% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,001 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 817 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 198.4% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 752 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 239.5% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,220 shares of the company’s stock valued at $195,000 after acquiring an additional 4,388 shares during the last quarter. 50.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CENTA. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Central Garden & Pet has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.00.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CENTA opened at $34.57 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $2.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.57 and a beta of 0.59. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $33.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.62. Central Garden & Pet Company has a twelve month low of $25.97 and a twelve month high of $37.71. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 3.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $906.15 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $846.58 million. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 5.42% and a return on equity of 11.55%. Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.86 EPS for the current year.

About Central Garden & Pet

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.