Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the six research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation, three have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $46.6667.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on CENTA. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen raised Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price target on Central Garden & Pet from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings raised Central Garden & Pet from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Central Garden & Pet from $32.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Up 5.3%

CENTA opened at $40.60 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.15 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 3.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Central Garden & Pet has a twelve month low of $25.97 and a twelve month high of $40.79. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $37.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $34.63.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.03. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 5.39% and a return on equity of 11.38%. The firm had revenue of $882.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $882.96 million. Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.850- EPS. Analysts predict that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 37.6% in the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 10,979 shares of the company’s stock worth $426,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 22.6% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,295 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 96.3% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,855 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 910 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Central Garden & Pet by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 259,248 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,405,000 after purchasing an additional 8,088 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi acquired a new position in Central Garden & Pet during the 1st quarter worth approximately $239,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.82% of the company’s stock.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet Co is a leading producer, marketer and distributor of branded consumable gardening products and pet supplies in North America. Headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, the company serves both retail and wholesale customers through a network of distribution centers across the United States and Canada. Operating under the ticker symbol CENTA on the NASDAQ exchange, Central Garden & Pet has been publicly traded since 2003.

The company’s Garden segment offers a broad portfolio of lawn and garden care solutions, including fertilizers, weed and pest control products, soil and mulch, and plant care accessories.