24,960 Shares in Central Garden & Pet Company $CENTA Purchased by Weiss Asset Management LP

Weiss Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 24,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $809,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. LSV Asset Management increased its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 53.4% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,123,479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,984,000 after buying an additional 738,860 shares in the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Central Garden & Pet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $13,749,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 181.2% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 549,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,222,000 after buying an additional 354,016 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 168.5% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 292,197 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,529,000 after buying an additional 183,363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP grew its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 1,109.1% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 196,777 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,811,000 after acquiring an additional 180,503 shares during the period. 50.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ CENTA opened at $38.27 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $2.39 billion, a PE ratio of 13.92 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a current ratio of 3.45, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Central Garden & Pet Company has a 12-month low of $25.97 and a 12-month high of $39.99. The company has a 50-day moving average of $36.93 and a 200 day moving average of $34.12.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $906.15 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $846.58 million. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 5.42%.Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on CENTA. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Zacks Research cut shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Central Garden & Pet from $32.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Central Garden & Pet from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.67.

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.