Jennison Associates LLC Reduces Holdings in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Jennison Associates LLC cut its holdings in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT - Free Report) by 10.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,027,436 shares of the company's stock after selling 123,505 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC owned about 2.12% of Freshpet worth $152,173,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Freshpet during the third quarter valued at $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Freshpet by 302.0% during the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 201 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Freshpet during the third quarter valued at $32,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Freshpet during the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Freshpet during the third quarter valued at $54,000.

Insider Activity at Freshpet

In related news, President Scott James Morris sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.38, for a total transaction of $786,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 122,380 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,260,164.40. This represents a 3.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Freshpet from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $160.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $163.36.

Freshpet Price Performance

Shares of FRPT traded down $1.02 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $148.51. 453,758 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 569,848. Freshpet, Inc. has a 1-year low of $84.02 and a 1-year high of $164.07. 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 company has a 50 day moving average of $150.86 and a 200-day moving average of $142.35. The stock has a market cap of $7.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 166.87 and a beta of 1.42.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.10. Freshpet had a net margin of 4.75% and a return on equity of 3.67%. The firm had revenue of $253.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $248.36 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.15) EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 26.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.9 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.