Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Shares Down 2% - Here's What Happened

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded down 2% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $84.50 and last traded at $85.02. 154,901 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 1,277,338 shares. The stock had previously closed at $86.77.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Freshpet from $155.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Freshpet from $155.00 to $142.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Freshpet from $154.00 to $102.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Oppenheimer lowered Freshpet from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Freshpet from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a report on Monday, February 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Freshpet currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $151.67.

Freshpet Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 3.91, a current ratio of 4.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market capitalization of $4.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 90.51 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $133.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $139.94.

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Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.36. The company had revenue of $262.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $275.46 million. Freshpet had a return on equity of 3.92% and a net margin of 4.81%. As a group, research analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Atria Investments Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 5.5% during the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 5,049 shares of the company's stock valued at $691,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP acquired a new position in Freshpet during the 3rd quarter valued at about $300,000. Entropy Technologies LP grew its position in Freshpet by 34.3% in the 3rd quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 4,309 shares of the company's stock worth $589,000 after purchasing an additional 1,101 shares during the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. increased its stake in shares of Freshpet by 2.6% in the third quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 51,331 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,021,000 after purchasing an additional 1,318 shares during the period. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Freshpet during the third quarter valued at approximately $77,000.

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.

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