Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) by 9.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,880 shares of the company’s stock after selling 694 shares during the quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Central Garden & Pet were worth $225,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Central Garden & Pet during the 1st quarter worth approximately $573,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Central Garden & Pet in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $224,000. NorthRock Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Central Garden & Pet in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,922,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 197,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,532,000 after purchasing an additional 11,242 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 3,083.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 32,599 shares of the company’s stock valued at $996,000 after purchasing an additional 31,575 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.82% of the company’s stock.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Performance

CENTA stock opened at $32.42 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.31, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $2.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.33 and a beta of 0.66. Central Garden & Pet Company has a 12-month low of $27.70 and a 12-month high of $37.31. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.66.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $833.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $876.36 million. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 10.14% and a net margin of 3.90%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.38 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CENTA. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $35.00 target price (down from $40.00) on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Central Garden & Pet from $34.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman William E. Brown sold 7,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.04, for a total transaction of $249,912.00. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 377,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,091,351.32. This represents a 2.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 107,800 shares of company stock worth $3,490,112. Corporate insiders own 20.28% of the company’s stock.

Central Garden & Pet Profile

Central Garden & Pet Co engages in the production and distribution of branded and private label products for the lawn, garden, and pet supplies markets. It operates through the Pet and Garden segments. The Pet segment focuses on 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, food and supplements, products for equine and livestock, animal and household health and insect control products, live fish, and small animals, as well as outdoor cushions.