Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Shares Sold by Quantbot Technologies LP

Quantbot Technologies LP cut its holdings in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 8.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,685 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,561 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP owned about 0.06% of Freshpet worth $3,453,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet during the fourth quarter worth about $489,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 272,905 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,677,000 after purchasing an additional 5,960 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 828,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,841,000 after purchasing an additional 54,656 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 56.5% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 88,743 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,699,000 after purchasing an additional 32,026 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet during the fourth quarter worth about $40,327,000.

Freshpet Price Performance

FRPT stock opened at $140.62 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $129.15 and a 200-day moving average of $122.53. Freshpet, Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.60 and a 12-month high of $143.06. The company has a current ratio of 4.50, a quick ratio of 3.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a market cap of $6.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 781.22 and a beta of 1.39.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by $0.06. Freshpet had a net margin of 2.86% and a return on equity of 1.78%. The company had revenue of $235.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $230.99 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.35) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 2,178 shares of Freshpet stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.01, for a total transaction of $304,941.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 86,039 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,046,320.39. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on FRPT. Bank of America raised their price objective on Freshpet from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Freshpet from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Citigroup raised their price target on Freshpet from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Freshpet in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Freshpet from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Freshpet presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $142.87.

Freshpet 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.