Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) Issues FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) updated its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Wednesday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 2.700- for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 2.840. The company issued revenue guidance of -.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on CENTA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Central Garden & Pet to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Central Garden & Pet from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.00.

Central Garden & Pet Price Performance

Central Garden & Pet stock traded down $0.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $34.26. 35,136 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 287,580. Central Garden & Pet has a 12-month low of $25.97 and a 12-month high of $37.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 3.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $33.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $31.17. The company has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.45 and a beta of 0.59.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.21. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 5.42% and a return on equity of 11.67%. The business had revenue of $906.15 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $846.58 million. Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director John Ranelli sold 3,668 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.50, for a total value of $126,546.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,287. This trade represents a 85.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Brendan Dougher sold 3,250 shares of Central Garden & Pet stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.38, for a total value of $108,485.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 12,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $428,766.10. This trade represents a 20.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 20.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Central Garden & Pet

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CENTA. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 19.8% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 16,233 shares of the company’s stock valued at $474,000 after purchasing an additional 2,679 shares during the period. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury boosted its position in Central Garden & Pet by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 41,943 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,286,000 after purchasing an additional 4,684 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 27.6% in the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 156,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,573,000 after purchasing an additional 33,892 shares during the last quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC grew its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 18.0% in the fourth quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC now owns 11,235 shares of the company’s stock valued at $328,000 after purchasing an additional 1,714 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 57.3% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 56,618 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,653,000 after purchasing an additional 20,616 shares in the last quarter. 50.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Central Garden & Pet

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.