Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) Shares Bought by AQR Capital Management LLC

AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 119.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 69,354 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 37,702 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.14% of Freshpet worth $8,876,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FRPT. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Freshpet in the second quarter worth $1,452,000. Fred Alger Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Freshpet during the 2nd quarter worth $308,000. Xponance Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 15.9% in the 2nd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 3,051 shares of the company’s stock valued at $395,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares in the last quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 241.2% in the 2nd quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 68,126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,815,000 after purchasing an additional 48,160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Freshpet by 1,041.9% in the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 49,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,353,000 after purchasing an additional 44,800 shares during the period.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 2,178 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $12,046,320.39. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Freshpet Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of FRPT opened at $135.60 on Thursday. Freshpet, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.60 and a fifty-two week high of $144.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $132.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $124.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 3.69 and a current ratio of 4.50. The company has a market capitalization of $6.57 billion, a PE ratio of 751.00 and a beta of 1.39.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $235.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $230.99 million. Freshpet had a return on equity of 1.78% and a net margin of 2.86%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 28.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.35) EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.72 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on FRPT shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Freshpet from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Freshpet from $140.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Freshpet from $124.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Freshpet from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Freshpet in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Freshpet has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $142.87.

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.