Washington Trust Advisors Inc. Purchases 500 Shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. raised its position in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 617.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 581 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 500 shares during the quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Freshpet were worth $50,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in FRPT. JANA Partners Management LP purchased a new position in Freshpet during the third quarter worth about $214,405,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in Freshpet by 47.6% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,545,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $167,519,000 after buying an additional 820,482 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet in the 4th quarter worth about $35,691,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 28.4% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,075,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $137,344,000 after purchasing an additional 458,570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freshpet in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,044,000.

Freshpet Trading Down 0.1 %

FRPT traded down $0.12 during trading on Thursday, hitting $115.59. 181,863 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 647,154. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $98.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $80.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 4.08 and a current ratio of 4.79. Freshpet, Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.60 and a 12-month high of $116.96.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $215.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $204.93 million. Freshpet had a negative return on equity of 3.56% and a negative net margin of 4.38%. The company’s revenue was up 29.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.06) EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Scott James Morris sold 2,500 shares of Freshpet stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.02, for a total value of $280,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 122,380 shares in the company, valued at $13,709,007.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Freshpet news, COO Scott James Morris sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.02, for a total transaction of $280,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 122,380 shares in the company, valued at $13,709,007.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 7,130 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.53, for a total value of $773,818.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 85,056 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,231,127.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 12,130 shares of company stock worth $1,338,269. Corporate insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FRPT has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Freshpet from $67.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Freshpet in a research note on Tuesday, December 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $90.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Freshpet from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. StockNews.com raised Freshpet to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 30th. Finally, TheStreet raised Freshpet from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $105.93.

Freshpet Profile

Freshpet, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, and markets natural fresh meals and treats for dogs and cats in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It sells dog food, cat food, and dog treats under the Freshpet brand name; and Dognation and Dog Joy labels through various classes of retail, including grocery, mass, club, pet specialty, and natural, as well as online.