Gabelli Funds LLC Cuts Holdings in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Gabelli Funds LLC lessened its stake in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 7.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,400 shares of the company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Freshpet were worth $311,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Freshpet by 41.1% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 371 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 13.9% in the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,305 shares of the company’s stock valued at $169,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank lifted its position in shares of Freshpet by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 2,740 shares of the company’s stock worth $355,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Freshpet by 65.9% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 496 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RiverPark Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Freshpet by 9.6% in the second quarter. RiverPark Advisors LLC now owns 2,568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $332,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the last quarter.

Freshpet Stock Performance

NASDAQ FRPT opened at $135.92 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 755.11 and a beta of 1.39. Freshpet, Inc. has a 52-week low of $54.60 and a 52-week high of $144.38. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $131.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $124.31. The company has a quick ratio of 3.69, a current ratio of 4.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.06. The company had revenue of $235.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $230.99 million. Freshpet had a return on equity of 1.78% and a net margin of 2.86%. The company’s revenue was up 28.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.35) EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Freshpet

In other Freshpet news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 2,178 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.01, for a total transaction of $304,941.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 86,039 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,046,320.39. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 3.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on FRPT. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Freshpet in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Freshpet from $140.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Freshpet from $113.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Freshpet from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $142.87.

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.