Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday after Oppenheimer downgraded the stock from an outperform rating to a market perform rating. The stock had previously closed at $85.05, but opened at $82.67. Freshpet shares last traded at $83.13, with a volume of 129,061 shares changing hands.

FRPT has been the topic of a number of other reports. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $155.00 to $142.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 price objective (down from $170.00) on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Freshpet from $155.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com cut Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Freshpet from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.67.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freshpet

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in Freshpet by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 2,253 shares of the company’s stock valued at $333,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Freshpet by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,887 shares of the company’s stock valued at $805,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Freshpet by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 2,111 shares of the company’s stock valued at $313,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Freshpet by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $249,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Freshpet by 19.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 573 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter.

Freshpet Price Performance

The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $136.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $141.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 3.91 and a current ratio of 4.72. The stock has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 87.55 and a beta of 1.58.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.36. Freshpet had a return on equity of 3.92% and a net margin of 4.81%. The business had revenue of $262.71 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $275.46 million. Research analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Freshpet Company Profile

Freshpet, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, and markets natural fresh meals and treats for dogs and cats in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It sells dog food, cat food, and dog treats under the Freshpet brand name; and Dognation and Dog Joy labels through various classes of retail, including grocery, mass, club, pet specialty, and natural, as well as online.