Oppenheimer Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Stock

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT - Free Report) had its price objective lifted by Oppenheimer from $155.00 to $180.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the stock.

FRPT has been the topic of a number of other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $126.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Freshpet from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Freshpet in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $160.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Freshpet currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $157.80.

Freshpet Stock Down 1.9 %

NASDAQ:FRPT traded down $2.90 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $150.83. The stock had a trading volume of 397,342 shares, compared to its average volume of 584,423. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $140.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $131.55. The company has a market capitalization of $7.32 billion, a PE ratio of 172.73 and a beta of 1.39. Freshpet has a twelve month low of $68.14 and a twelve month high of $159.12. The company has a current ratio of 4.72, a quick ratio of 3.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $253.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $248.36 million. Freshpet had a net margin of 4.75% and a return on equity of 3.67%. The firm's revenue was up 26.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.15) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Freshpet will post 0.87 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Freshpet

In related news, insider Thembeka Machaba sold 2,500 shares of Freshpet stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.85, for a total value of $384,625.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Freshpet news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 2,178 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.01, for a total value of $304,941.78. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 86,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,046,320.39. This trade represents a 2.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Thembeka Machaba sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.85, for a total value of $384,625.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freshpet

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Freshpet in the first quarter valued at $811,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet during the 2nd quarter worth $3,964,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet during the 2nd quarter worth $4,299,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Freshpet by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,666,407 shares of the company's stock worth $540,650,000 after buying an additional 13,709 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet during the 1st quarter worth $1,935,000.

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.