Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) Hits New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $43.83 and last traded at $42.57, with a volume of 121223 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $43.18.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CENT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Central Garden & Pet in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on Central Garden & Pet from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $54.00.

Central Garden & Pet Trading Up 0.8%

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.74 and a beta of 0.63. The company’s 50 day moving average is $39.22 and its 200 day moving average is $36.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 3.45.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.21. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 5.42% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The firm had revenue of $906.15 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $846.58 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.04 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Central Garden & Pet

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,100,839 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,942,000 after acquiring an additional 32,716 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 808,304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,825,000 after purchasing an additional 4,178 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 385,957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,409,000 after purchasing an additional 3,306 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 39.2% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 259,144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,500,000 after purchasing an additional 72,977 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC bought a new position in Central Garden & Pet in the first quarter worth $7,347,000. 16.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ: CENT) is a leading North American specialty retailer, manufacturer and distributor serving the lawn and garden and pet supplies markets. The company operates through two primary segments: Pet and Garden. In the Pet segment, Central Garden & Pet offers a comprehensive range of products including pet food, treats, accessories, training products and habitat solutions for dogs, cats, birds, fish and small animals. The Garden segment encompasses a wide array of lawn, garden and outdoor living products, such as soils, fertilizers, planters, pest control solutions, landscape lighting and watering equipment.

Central Garden & Pet’s product portfolio includes both proprietary and branded offerings.