Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Decreases Position in Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lessened its holdings in Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) by 15.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,783 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,779 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Central Garden & Pet were worth $484,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 53.1% during the 1st quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,490 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 5,458 shares of the company’s stock worth $180,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 6,538 shares of the company’s stock worth $216,000 after purchasing an additional 734 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet during the 1st quarter worth $224,000. Finally, Numerai GP LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet during the 4th quarter worth $237,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.82% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman William E. Brown sold 7,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.04, for a total value of $249,912.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 377,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,091,351.32. The trade was a 2.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 107,800 shares of company stock valued at $3,490,112 over the last three months. 20.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CENTA. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $35.00 price objective (down from $40.00) on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Central Garden & Pet currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.67.

Central Garden & Pet Price Performance

Shares of CENTA opened at $32.48 on Friday. Central Garden & Pet Company has a 1-year low of $27.70 and a 1-year high of $37.35. The stock has a market cap of $2.04 billion, a PE ratio of 14.76 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 3.56 and a quick ratio of 2.28. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $33.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $32.19.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.22. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 4.44% and a return on equity of 10.77%. The firm had revenue of $960.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $993.66 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.38 EPS for the current year.

Central Garden & Pet Company 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.