Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) Stake Boosted by Olstein Capital Management L.P.

Olstein Capital Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) by 13.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 83,000 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Olstein Capital Management L.P. owned about 0.12% of Central Garden & Pet worth $3,064,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 29.9% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,087,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,059,000 after purchasing an additional 480,805 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 54.2% in the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 19,670 shares of the company’s stock worth $726,000 after purchasing an additional 6,915 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA grew its position in Central Garden & Pet by 22.7% in the first quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 183,737 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,784,000 after buying an additional 33,983 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 61.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 519 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Central Garden & Pet by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 9,693 shares of the company’s stock valued at $427,000 after purchasing an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. 50.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Central Garden & Pet Stock Down 0.5 %

Central Garden & Pet stock traded down $0.18 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $33.05. The company had a trading volume of 109,414 shares, compared to its average volume of 258,501. Central Garden & Pet has a fifty-two week low of $27.88 and a fifty-two week high of $41.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 3.33 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.93 and a beta of 0.75. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $36.26 and its 200-day moving average is $34.94.

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.16. Central Garden & Pet had a net margin of 4.49% and a return on equity of 11.30%. The business had revenue of $900.09 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $895.68 million. On average, research analysts forecast that Central Garden & Pet will post 2.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman William E. Brown sold 700,000 shares of Central Garden & Pet stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.25, for a total transaction of $25,375,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,189,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,123,543.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Central Garden & Pet news, CAO Howard Machek sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.05, for a total transaction of $400,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 51,474 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,061,533.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman William E. Brown sold 700,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.25, for a total value of $25,375,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,189,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,123,543.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 714,218 shares of company stock valued at $25,945,528 in the last three months. Insiders own 20.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Central Garden & Pet from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price objective on shares of Central Garden & Pet from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Finally, Argus upgraded Central Garden & Pet to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $41.75.

Central Garden & Pet Company Profile

Central Garden & Pet Company produces and distributes various products for the lawn and garden, and pet supplies markets in the United States. It operates through two segments: Pet and Garden. The Pet segment provides 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, and food and supplements; products for equine and livestock; animal and household health and insect control products; aquariums and terrariums, including fixtures and stands, water conditioners and supplements, water pumps and filters, and lighting systems and accessories; and live fish and small animals, as well as outdoor cushions.