GW&K Investment Management LLC Sells 28,996 Shares of Central Garden & Pet Company $CENTA

GW&K Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) by 2.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,022,463 shares of the company’s stock after selling 28,996 shares during the quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC owned about 1.63% of Central Garden & Pet worth $30,193,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CENTA. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 164.0% in the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 858 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 444.0% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,001 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 817 shares in the last quarter. EMC Capital Management bought a new position in Central Garden & Pet in the second quarter worth about $87,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in Central Garden & Pet by 239.5% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,220 shares of the company’s stock worth $195,000 after buying an additional 4,388 shares during the period. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in Central Garden & Pet during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $214,000. 50.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Central Garden & Pet from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Wall Street Zen cut Central Garden & Pet from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. CJS Securities raised Central Garden & Pet to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $28.00 target price (down from $31.00) on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.75.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Down 2.2%

Central Garden & Pet stock opened at $32.91 on Friday. Central Garden & Pet Company has a 12 month low of $25.97 and a 12 month high of $37.35. The company has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.43 and a beta of 0.64. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.55. The company has a current ratio of 3.42, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $617.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $636.62 million. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 10.99% and a net margin of 5.04%.Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Brendan Dougher sold 3,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.38, for a total value of $108,485.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 12,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $428,766.10. This represents a 20.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John Ranelli sold 3,668 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.50, for a total transaction of $126,546.00. Following the sale, the director owned 646 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,287. The trade was a 85.03% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 20.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Central Garden & Pet Profile

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.