JPMorgan Chase & Co. Trims Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) Target Price to $38.00

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) had its target price lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $40.00 to $38.00 in a research note published on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price target on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Central Garden & Pet from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday, July 1st. Argus upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet to a strong-buy rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet to a strong-buy rating in a report on Monday, July 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Buy and an average price target of $40.50.

Central Garden & Pet Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CENTA opened at $33.25 on Monday. Central Garden & Pet has a 52 week low of $27.88 and a 52 week high of $41.03. The stock has a market cap of $2.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.94 and a beta of 0.75. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $34.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.42. The company has a current ratio of 3.33, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.16. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 4.49% and a return on equity of 11.30%. The company had revenue of $900.09 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $895.68 million. As a group, research analysts forecast that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Central Garden & Pet

In related news, Chairman William E. Brown sold 700,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.25, for a total value of $25,375,000.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,189,615 shares in the company, valued at $43,123,543.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, CAO Howard Machek sold 10,000 shares of Central Garden & Pet stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.05, for a total transaction of $400,500.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 51,474 shares in the company, valued at $2,061,533.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman William E. Brown sold 700,000 shares of Central Garden & Pet stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.25, for a total transaction of $25,375,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 1,189,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,123,543.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 714,218 shares of company stock worth $25,945,528. Company insiders own 20.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Central Garden & Pet

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 30.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,636,319 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,093,000 after buying an additional 1,306,309 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 29.9% during 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. Champlain Investment Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 24.8% during the first quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,303,369 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,040,000 after buying an additional 457,699 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet during the fourth quarter worth approximately $11,786,000. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of 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 worth $40,245,000 after buying an additional 217,006 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.82% of the company’s stock.

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.