Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) Stock Rating Upgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) was upgraded by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has a $68.00 target price on the stock, up from their prior target price of $66.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price would suggest a potential upside of 28.11% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Freshpet from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $71.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Freshpet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Freshpet from $90.00 to $78.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Freshpet from $98.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Freshpet presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.88.

Freshpet Stock Down 5.0%

FRPT opened at $53.08 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 4.57, a current ratio of 6.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $2.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.19 and a beta of 1.73. Freshpet has a twelve month low of $46.76 and a twelve month high of $89.80. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $68.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $64.53.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $285.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $285.66 million. Freshpet had a net margin of 17.63% and a return on equity of 6.22%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.36 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Freshpet will post 1.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Freshpet

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in Freshpet by 606.8% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 417 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 358 shares during the period. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new stake in Freshpet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Freshpet during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in Freshpet by 143.0% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 503 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Freshpet by 1,388.2% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 472 shares during the period.

Freshpet Company Profile

Freshpet Inc (NASDAQ: FRPT) is a leading pet food company specializing in fresh, refrigerated meals and treats for dogs and cats. The company’s products are formulated with carefully selected, natural ingredients and are designed to offer a higher level of nutrition and freshness than traditional dry or canned pet foods. Freshpet’s offerings include refrigerated rolls, pâtés and snacks, all of which are sold through the refrigerated section of grocery, mass-market and pet specialty stores.

Freshpet’s product portfolio is built around the concept of fresh, minimally processed recipes that do not require preservatives or artificial colors.