Canaccord Genuity Group Trims Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) Target Price to $49.00

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) had its price target cut by Canaccord Genuity Group from $52.00 to $49.00 in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

CENT has been the subject of several other research reports. Argus upgraded Central Garden & Pet from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $50.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Central Garden & Pet to a strong-buy rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group initiated coverage on Central Garden & Pet in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. They set a buy rating and a $52.00 target price for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Central Garden & Pet presently has an average rating of Buy and a consensus price target of $52.75.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of Central Garden & Pet stock opened at $38.43 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 3.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market cap of $2.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.26 and a beta of 0.78. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.34. Central Garden & Pet has a fifty-two week low of $29.73 and a fifty-two week high of $47.48.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $900.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $888.74 million. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 11.30% and a net margin of 4.49%. The company’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Nicholas Lahanas sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.98, for a total transaction of $1,199,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 87,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,499,369.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CAO Howard Machek sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.05, for a total transaction of $400,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 51,474 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,061,533.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Nicholas Lahanas sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.98, for a total value of $1,199,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 87,528 shares in the company, valued at $3,499,369.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 744,218 shares of company stock valued at $27,144,928 over the last three months. Insiders own 9.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CENT. EntryPoint Capital LLC increased its position in Central Garden & Pet by 909.2% in the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 4,269 shares of the company’s stock worth $183,000 after purchasing an additional 3,846 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in Central Garden & Pet in the 4th quarter worth about $241,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Central Garden & Pet by 28.3% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $243,000 after purchasing an additional 1,070 shares during the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in Central Garden & Pet by 21.8% in the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 5,137 shares of the company’s stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 919 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in Central Garden & Pet by 112.4% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 6,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 3,265 shares during the last quarter. 16.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet Company produces and distributes various products for the lawn and garden, and pet supplies markets in the United States. It operates through two segments: Pet and Garden. The Pet segment provides dog and cat supplies, such as dog treats and chews, toys, pet beds and containment, grooming products, waste management, and training pads; supplies for aquatics, small animals, reptiles, and pet birds, including toys, cages and habitats, bedding, and food and supplements; products for equine and livestock; animal and household health and insect control products; aquariums and terrariums, including fixtures and stands, water conditioners and supplements, water pumps and filters, and lighting systems and accessories; and live fish and small animals, as well as outdoor cushions.