Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) Receives $46.75 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the five analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $46.75.

A number of research firms have weighed in on CENT. Argus cut Central Garden & Pet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on Central Garden & Pet from $48.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 26th.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Up 2.3 %

NASDAQ CENT opened at $35.79 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $2.34 billion, a PE ratio of 19.66 and a beta of 0.73. Central Garden & Pet has a fifty-two week low of $32.17 and a fifty-two week high of $47.48. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $37.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 3.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03) by $0.24. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 10.08% and a net margin of 3.77%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider John D. Walker III sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.86, for a total transaction of $328,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 67,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,205,267.46. This represents a 12.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 8.19% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Central Garden & Pet

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,474,313 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,203,000 after purchasing an additional 125,418 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 796,917 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,920,000 after buying an additional 22,703 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 207,076 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,035,000 after acquiring an additional 3,655 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 200,091 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,764,000 after acquiring an additional 22,556 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 14.5% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 186,167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,223,000 after acquiring an additional 23,622 shares during the period. 16.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Central Garden & Pet Company Profile

Central Garden & Pet Co engages in the production and distribution of branded and private label products for the lawn, garden, and pet supplies markets. It operates through the Pet and Garden segments. The Pet segment focuses on dog and cat supplies such as dog treats and chews, toys, pet beds and containment, grooming products, waste management and training pads, supplies for aquatics, small animals, reptiles and pet birds including toys, cages and habitats, bedding, food and supplements, products for equine and livestock, animal and household health and insect control products, live fish and small animals as well as outdoor cushions.