Petco Health and Wellness (NASDAQ:WOOF) Trading 4.5% Higher

Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:WOOF) shares traded up 4.5% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $3.55 and last traded at $3.49. 1,946,879 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 59% from the average session volume of 4,769,320 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.34.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $5.00 target price on shares of Petco Health and Wellness in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Petco Health and Wellness from $3.00 to $2.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Petco Health and Wellness from $4.00 to $3.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $4.00 target price on shares of Petco Health and Wellness in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Petco Health and Wellness from $2.85 to $1.75 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $3.09.

Petco Health and Wellness Stock Performance

The company’s fifty day moving average is $2.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $2.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35.

Petco Health and Wellness (NASDAQ:WOOF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 22nd. The company reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.50 billion. Petco Health and Wellness had a negative net margin of 21.27% and a negative return on equity of 4.22%. As a group, analysts predict that Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc. will post -0.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Petco Health and Wellness

In related news, Director Cameron Breitner purchased 750,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $3.14 per share, for a total transaction of $2,355,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 750,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,355,000. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Petco Health and Wellness

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Petco Health and Wellness by 73.4% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,225,206 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,084,000 after acquiring an additional 2,210,988 shares during the last quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Petco Health and Wellness during the third quarter worth approximately $1,574,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Petco Health and Wellness by 3.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,717,125 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,563,000 after acquiring an additional 227,704 shares during the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Petco Health and Wellness during the third quarter worth approximately $436,000. Finally, FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Petco Health and Wellness by 216.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 604,446 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,472,000 after acquiring an additional 413,295 shares during the last quarter.

About Petco Health and Wellness

Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc, operates as a health and wellness company, focuses on enhancing the lives of pets, pet parents, and its Petco partners in the United States, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. The company provides veterinary care, grooming, training, tele-health, and Vital Care and pet health insurance services, as well as veterinary services through Vetco mobile clinics.