Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) has received an average recommendation of “Buy” from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $41.33.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Central Garden & Pet from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Central Garden & Pet from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 11th.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Brooks Pennington III sold 1,486 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.80, for a total transaction of $48,740.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 40,743 shares in the company, valued at $1,336,370.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Brooks Pennington III sold 1,486 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.80, for a total transaction of $48,740.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 40,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,336,370.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John Ranelli sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.28, for a total transaction of $85,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 822 shares in the company, valued at $28,178.16. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 63,986 shares of company stock worth $2,146,841 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 20.28% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Central Garden & Pet

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,330,010 shares of the company’s stock worth $190,694,000 after acquiring an additional 29,072 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co lifted its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 54.2% in the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 19,670 shares of the company’s stock worth $726,000 after acquiring an additional 6,915 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 30.5% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 32,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,214,000 after acquiring an additional 7,693 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 30.9% in the first quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 19,502 shares of the company’s stock worth $664,000 after acquiring an additional 4,602 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 37.2% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 2,061 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.82% of the company’s stock.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Down 1.5 %

CENTA stock opened at $29.31 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $1.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.14 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 3.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $33.78. Central Garden & Pet has a 52 week low of $27.70 and a 52 week high of $41.03.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $996.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.40 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.11 EPS for the current year.

About Central Garden & Pet

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.