Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) Sets New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $43.17 and last traded at $42.41, with a volume of 69518 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.85.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on CENT shares. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on Central Garden & Pet from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research raised Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.00.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Down 1.2%

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $38.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $36.16. 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 company has a market capitalization of $2.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.45 and a beta of 0.63.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $906.15 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $846.58 million. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 5.42% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.04 earnings per share. Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CENT. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 632.3% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 974 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 841 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Central Garden & Pet in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 1,532.7% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,845 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 1,732 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 152.3% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 1,159 shares during the period. Finally, iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new position in Central Garden & Pet in the 3rd quarter valued at $94,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.13% of the company’s stock.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ: CENT) is a leading North American specialty retailer, manufacturer and distributor serving the lawn and garden and pet supplies markets. The company operates through two primary segments: Pet and Garden. In the Pet segment, Central Garden & Pet offers a comprehensive range of products including pet food, treats, accessories, training products and habitat solutions for dogs, cats, birds, fish and small animals. The Garden segment encompasses a wide array of lawn, garden and outdoor living products, such as soils, fertilizers, planters, pest control solutions, landscape lighting and watering equipment.

Central Garden & Pet’s product portfolio includes both proprietary and branded offerings.