Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Trading Down 11.4% – Time to Sell?

Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)’s stock price dropped 11.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $53.57 and last traded at $53.3190. Approximately 2,168,283 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 51% from the average daily volume of 1,434,713 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.17.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on FRPT shares. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Freshpet from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $66.00 to $68.00 in a report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and issued a $63.00 target price on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Thursday. TD Cowen raised Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.88.

Freshpet Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $64.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.19 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 4.57 and a current ratio of 6.18.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.21. Freshpet had a return on equity of 6.22% and a net margin of 17.63%.The company had revenue of $285.23 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $285.66 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.36 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its holdings in Freshpet by 41.0% in the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,839,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,921,000 after purchasing an additional 1,116,217 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 1,031.9% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 931,905 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,781,000 after buying an additional 1,031,905 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of Freshpet by 151.8% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,482,778 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,716,000 after buying an additional 893,949 shares during the period. Alberta Investment Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Freshpet in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,862,000. Finally, Armistice Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Freshpet by 118.4% in the 3rd quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 1,234,802 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,050,000 after acquiring an additional 669,399 shares during the last quarter.

About Freshpet

Freshpet Inc (NASDAQ: FRPT) is a leading pet food company specializing in fresh, refrigerated meals and treats for dogs and cats. The company’s products are formulated with carefully selected, natural ingredients and are designed to offer a higher level of nutrition and freshness than traditional dry or canned pet foods. Freshpet’s offerings include refrigerated rolls, pâtés and snacks, all of which are sold through the refrigerated section of grocery, mass-market and pet specialty stores.

Freshpet’s product portfolio is built around the concept of fresh, minimally processed recipes that do not require preservatives or artificial colors.