Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Makes New Investment in Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 2,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $96,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Central Garden & Pet during the 2nd quarter valued at $341,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 215.8% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 24,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $803,000 after buying an additional 16,768 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,653,753 shares of the company’s stock valued at $120,682,000 after buying an additional 29,780 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new stake in Central Garden & Pet during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 89,423 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,954,000 after buying an additional 1,245 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on CENTA. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Central Garden & Pet to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $42.00.

Insider Transactions at Central Garden & Pet

In related news, Director Brooks Pennington III sold 1,486 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the director now owns 40,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,336,370.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related 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 sale, the director now directly owns 40,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,336,370.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman William E. Brown sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.54, for a total transaction of $2,012,400.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 1,125,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,758,426.42. 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 in the last ninety days. 20.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Performance

Shares of Central Garden & Pet stock opened at $31.77 on Friday. Central Garden & Pet has a 12 month low of $27.88 and a 12 month high of $41.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.25 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 3.66, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $34.83.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.07. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 4.42% and a return on equity of 10.66%. The firm had revenue of $996.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.40 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.