Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Takes $733,000 Position in Central Garden & Pet Company $CENTA

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 22,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $733,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CENTA. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 15.9% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 18,471 shares of the company’s stock valued at $605,000 after acquiring an additional 2,532 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 56.8% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 48,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,585,000 after acquiring an additional 17,556 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in Central Garden & Pet by 2.5% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 30,421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $996,000 after purchasing an additional 743 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Central Garden & Pet by 179.2% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 180,907 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,921,000 after purchasing an additional 116,101 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in Central Garden & Pet by 5.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 263,518 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,625,000 after buying an additional 12,749 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.82% of the company’s stock.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Up 0.5%

Central Garden & Pet stock traded up $0.19 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $37.62. 7,103 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 315,820. The company has a market cap of $2.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.68 and a beta of 0.57. Central Garden & Pet Company has a twelve month low of $25.97 and a twelve month high of $39.99. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 3.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a fifty day moving average of $35.78 and a 200-day moving average of $33.22.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.21. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 5.42% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The business had revenue of $906.15 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $846.58 million. Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.00.

Central Garden & Pet Profile

Central Garden & Pet Co is a leading producer, marketer and distributor of branded consumable gardening products and pet supplies in North America. Headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, the company serves both retail and wholesale customers through a network of distribution centers across the United States and Canada. Operating under the ticker symbol CENTA on the NASDAQ exchange, Central Garden & Pet has been publicly traded since 2003.

The company’s Garden segment offers a broad portfolio of lawn and garden care solutions, including fertilizers, weed and pest control products, soil and mulch, and plant care accessories.