Mutual of America Capital Management LLC Reduces Position in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Mutual of America Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 58,252 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,227 shares during the period. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Freshpet were worth $7,537,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of FRPT. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Freshpet by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 272,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,677,000 after acquiring an additional 5,960 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Freshpet by 7.1% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 828,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,841,000 after acquiring an additional 54,656 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 56.5% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 88,743 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,699,000 after purchasing an additional 32,026 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Freshpet in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,327,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Freshpet by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 8,347 shares of the company’s stock valued at $724,000 after purchasing an additional 1,213 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling at Freshpet

In other Freshpet news, EVP Stephen Macchiaverna sold 2,178 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.01, for a total value of $304,941.78. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 86,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,046,320.39. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Freshpet Price Performance

Shares of FRPT opened at $141.24 on Friday. Freshpet, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.60 and a fifty-two week high of $144.38. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $130.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $123.26. The company has a market cap of $6.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 784.67 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 3.69, a current ratio of 4.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.06. Freshpet had a net margin of 2.86% and a return on equity of 1.78%. The firm had revenue of $235.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $230.99 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.35) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Freshpet, Inc. will post 0.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on FRPT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Freshpet from $113.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Freshpet from $143.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Freshpet from $140.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of Freshpet in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Freshpet from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $142.87.

About Freshpet

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.