Western Standard LLC Buys Shares of 64,000 Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT

Western Standard LLC purchased a new position in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 64,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,527,000. Freshpet makes up approximately 1.0% of Western Standard LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Western Standard LLC owned 0.13% of Freshpet at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in FRPT. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in Freshpet in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 1,388.2% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 472 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Ossiam raised its stake in shares of Freshpet by 81.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ossiam now owns 509 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Freshpet by 258.9% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 542 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FRPT has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group set a $48.00 price target on shares of Freshpet and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Freshpet from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley upgraded Freshpet from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $71.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Freshpet currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.47.

Insider Transactions at Freshpet

In related news, President Scott James Morris sold 5,142 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.33, for a total transaction of $320,500.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 30,858 shares in the company, valued at $1,923,379.14. The trade was a 14.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 4.43% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Freshpet Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:FRPT opened at $81.26 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $67.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $60.04. The stock has a market cap of $3.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.62, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.72. Freshpet, Inc. has a 52-week low of $46.76 and a 52-week high of $111.62. The company has a quick ratio of 4.61, a current ratio of 5.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.21. Freshpet had a net margin of 12.63% and a return on equity of 6.93%. The company had revenue of $285.23 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $285.66 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.36 EPS. Freshpet’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.55 EPS for the current year.

About Freshpet

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.