Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENTA) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has assigned a hold recommendation, two have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $45.00.

A number of analysts have recently commented on CENTA shares. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their target price 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. Zacks Research upgraded Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 17th.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Performance

NASDAQ CENTA opened at $37.71 on Thursday. Central Garden & Pet has a fifty-two week low of $25.97 and a fifty-two week high of $38.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 3.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.71 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $34.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.64.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.21. Central Garden & Pet had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 5.42%.The firm had revenue of $906.15 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $846.58 million. Central Garden & Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CENTA. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Central Garden & Pet in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in Central Garden & Pet in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 444.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,001 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 817 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 198.4% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 752 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 577.9% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 1,654 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 1,410 shares in the last quarter. 50.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Central Garden & Pet Company 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.