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

Shares of Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the three analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $45.00.

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CENTA. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Central Garden & Pet from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th.

Central Garden & Pet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CENTA opened at $35.94 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 3.47. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $35.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.80. The stock has a market cap of $2.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.79 and a beta of 0.70. Central Garden & Pet has a fifty-two week low of $27.02 and a fifty-two week high of $39.55.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by $0.15. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 10.32% and a net margin of 4.06%. The business had revenue of $634.53 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $620.11 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Central Garden & Pet news, Director John Ranelli sold 2,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.34, for a total transaction of $92,016.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 41 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,571.94. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Nicholas Lahanas sold 13,101 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.64, for a total transaction of $493,121.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 115,796 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,358,561.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John Ranelli sold 2,400 shares of Central Garden & Pet stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.34, for a total transaction of $92,016.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 41 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,571.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 25,822 shares of company stock valued at $965,026 in the last three months. Company insiders own 20.28% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Central Garden & Pet

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,330,010 shares of the company’s stock worth $190,694,000 after purchasing an additional 29,072 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,740,909 shares of the company’s stock worth $120,711,000 after purchasing an additional 23,601 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 29.9% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,087,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $77,059,000 after buying an additional 480,805 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 24.9% during the first quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,090,060 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,245,000 after buying an additional 217,006 shares during the period. Finally, Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 12.3% during the fourth quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 800,109 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,237,000 after buying an additional 87,802 shares in the last quarter. 50.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Central Garden & Pet Company 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.