Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.16 EPS

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) announced its earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.16, Briefing.com reports. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 10.32% and a net margin of 4.06%. The company had revenue of $900.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $888.74 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. Central Garden & Pet’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Central Garden & Pet updated its FY 2024 guidance to 2.000- EPS and its FY24 guidance to $2.50 EPS.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Up 9.6 %

Shares of CENT stock traded up $4.00 during trading on Thursday, hitting $45.73. 71,550 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 110,139. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 3.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.50 and a beta of 0.72. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $36.32. Central Garden & Pet has a twelve month low of $28.58 and a twelve month high of $45.80.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. TheStreet upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Canaccord Genuity Group initiated coverage on Central Garden & Pet in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $52.00 target price for the company. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group began coverage on Central Garden & Pet in a research report on Tuesday, March 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $52.00 price target on the stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Nicholas Lahanas sold 13,101 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.64, for a total transaction of $493,121.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 115,796 shares in the company, valued at $4,358,561.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Central Garden & Pet news, CFO Nicholas Lahanas sold 13,101 shares of Central Garden & Pet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.64, for a total value of $493,121.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 115,796 shares in the company, valued at $4,358,561.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Edward Hanson sold 5,321 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.19, for a total transaction of $197,887.99. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 35,460 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,318,757.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 25,822 shares of company stock worth $965,026. 9.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet Company produces and distributes various products for the lawn and garden, and pet supplies markets in the United States. It operates through two segments: Pet and Garden. The Pet segment provides dog and cat supplies, such as dog treats and chews, toys, pet beds and containment, grooming products, waste management, and training pads; supplies for aquatics, small animals, reptiles, and pet birds, including toys, cages and habitats, bedding, and food and supplements; products for equine and livestock; animal and household health and insect control products; aquariums and terrariums, including fixtures and stands, water conditioners and supplements, water pumps and filters, and lighting systems and accessories; and live fish and small animals, as well as outdoor cushions.