Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) Position Increased by LSV Asset Management

LSV Asset Management increased its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) by 85.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 439,066 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 202,761 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned about 0.65% of Central Garden & Pet worth $14,502,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Natixis Advisors L.P. bought a new position in Central Garden & Pet during the fourth quarter valued at about $494,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 522,525 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,012,000 after buying an additional 3,149 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,740,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $120,711,000 after buying an additional 23,601 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Central Garden & Pet during the fourth quarter valued at about $11,786,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 9,693 shares of the company’s stock valued at $427,000 after buying an additional 341 shares in the last quarter. 50.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Down 1.8 %

CENTA stock opened at $32.10 on Wednesday. Central Garden & Pet has a twelve month low of $27.88 and a twelve month high of $41.03. The company has a market cap of $2.16 billion, a PE ratio of 14.42 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.20. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 3.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 4.42%. The business had revenue of $996.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.40 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on CENTA. Argus upgraded Central Garden & Pet to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Central Garden & Pet from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Central Garden & Pet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 1st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Central Garden & Pet from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Central Garden & Pet has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman William E. Brown sold 60,000 shares of Central Garden & Pet stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.54, for a total transaction of $2,012,400.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,125,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,758,426.42. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Central Garden & Pet news, Chairman William E. Brown sold 60,000 shares of Central Garden & Pet stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.54, for a total transaction of $2,012,400.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,125,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,758,426.42. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John Ranelli sold 2,500 shares of Central Garden & Pet stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.28, for a total value of $85,700.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 822 shares in the company, valued at $28,178.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 63,986 shares of company stock valued at $2,146,841 over the last three months. 20.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Central Garden & Pet Profile

Central Garden & Pet Company produces and distributes various products for the lawn and garden, and pet supplies markets in the United States. It operates through two segments: Pet and Garden. The Pet segment provides 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, and food and supplements; products for equine and livestock; animal and household health and insect control products; aquariums and terrariums, including fixtures and stands, water conditioners and supplements, water pumps and filters, and lighting systems and accessories; and live fish and small animals, as well as outdoor cushions.