Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Has $7.90 Million Stock Holdings in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 89.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 90,997 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 42,973 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned about 0.19% of Freshpet worth $7,895,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,327,109 shares of the company’s stock worth $216,745,000 after purchasing an additional 107,824 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Freshpet by 5.5% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,576,014 shares of the company’s stock valued at $235,588,000 after acquiring an additional 185,210 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Freshpet by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Wasatch Advisors Inc. now owns 3,479,089 shares of the company’s stock valued at $357,094,000 after acquiring an additional 170,766 shares in the last quarter. JANA Partners Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Freshpet in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $214,405,000. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 2,740,708 shares of the company’s stock worth $180,558,000 after purchasing an additional 110,383 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling at Freshpet

In other Freshpet news, COO Scott James Morris sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.02, for a total transaction of $280,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 122,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,709,007.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 7,130 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.53, for a total transaction of $773,818.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,056 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,231,127.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Scott James Morris sold 2,500 shares of Freshpet stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.02, for a total value of $280,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 122,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,709,007.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,762 shares of company stock valued at $1,737,280. 3.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Freshpet Stock Performance

Freshpet stock opened at $105.15 on Thursday. Freshpet, Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.60 and a 12-month high of $117.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -148.10 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 4.08, a current ratio of 4.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $85.15.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $215.40 million during 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 29.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.06) earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FRPT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup assumed coverage on Freshpet in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $94.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Freshpet from $104.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Freshpet from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Freshpet from $67.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Freshpet from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Freshpet currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $107.36.

Freshpet Company 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.