Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) Shares Pass Above 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $36.93 and traded as high as $44.90. Central Garden & Pet shares last traded at $44.60, with a volume of 95,026 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CENT. Zacks Research raised Central Garden & Pet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on Central Garden & Pet from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Central Garden & Pet from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $54.00.

Central Garden & Pet Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 3.45 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.22 and a beta of 0.63. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $39.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $36.93.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $906.15 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $846.58 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.04 earnings per share. The company’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. As a group, equities analysts expect that Central Garden & Pet Company will post 2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Central Garden & Pet

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new position in Central Garden & Pet in the 1st quarter valued at $7,347,000. Citadel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Central Garden & Pet by 120.9% in the third quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 156,596 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,113,000 after purchasing an additional 85,706 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 39.2% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 259,144 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,500,000 after purchasing an additional 72,977 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 59.5% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 181,787 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,684,000 after purchasing an additional 67,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 37.7% in the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 149,156 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,247,000 after buying an additional 40,803 shares in the last quarter. 16.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Central Garden & Pet Company Profile

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.