Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) Chairman Sells $2,012,400.00 in Stock

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) Chairman William E. Brown sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 1,125,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,758,426.42. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ:CENT opened at $38.74 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.66, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. Central Garden & Pet has a 12 month low of $30.75 and a 12 month high of $47.48. The company has a market cap of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 17.37 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $38.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $40.99.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Central Garden & Pet

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CENT. Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 748.5% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 84,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,234,000 after acquiring an additional 74,100 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 885,333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,085,000 after acquiring an additional 51,454 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 24.5% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 162,647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,262,000 after acquiring an additional 32,009 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 92.6% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 51,117 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,189,000 after acquiring an additional 24,575 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 32.4% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 41,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,793,000 after acquiring an additional 10,237 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 16.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CENT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Central Garden & Pet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $52.00 to $49.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 1st. Argus raised shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Central Garden & Pet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.75.

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.