First Trust Advisors LP Grows Stock Holdings in Central Garden & Pet Company $CENTA

First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) by 28.4% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 140,311 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 31,009 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Central Garden & Pet were worth $4,549,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Central Garden & Pet Stock Performance

Central Garden & Pet stock opened at $38.65 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $2.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.05 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 3.45 and a quick ratio of 2.16. Central Garden & Pet Company has a 12 month low of $25.97 and a 12 month high of $39.99. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $37.40 and its 200-day moving average is $34.49.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $906.15 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $846.58 million. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 5.42%. Equities analysts anticipate that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CENTA. Weiss Ratings raised Central Garden & Pet from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price objective on 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $32.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Central Garden & Pet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.67.

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.