Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Stock Price Up 1% – Should You Buy?

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)’s share price rose 1% on Friday . The company traded as high as $87.33 and last traded at $87.27. Approximately 122,536 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 697,402 shares. The stock had previously closed at $86.42.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FRPT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Freshpet from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Freshpet from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 target price (down from $170.00) on shares of Freshpet in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Freshpet from $170.00 to $142.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Monday, February 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $151.67.

Freshpet Stock Up 0.5 %

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $125.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $137.87. The firm has a market cap of $4.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 92.44 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 4.72 and a quick ratio of 3.91.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36. The business had revenue of $262.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $275.46 million. Freshpet had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 3.92%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freshpet

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Freshpet by 21.9% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,084 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,049,000 after acquiring an additional 1,272 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in shares of Freshpet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $14,678,000. Forum Financial Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Freshpet during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $215,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its position in shares of Freshpet by 24.3% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 51,129 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,573,000 after acquiring an additional 10,009 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elequin Capital LP purchased a new stake in Freshpet in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000.

About Freshpet

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.