Freshpet slides 8.7% as investors digest margin pressure and one-time items in Q1 update

Freshpet, Inc. (FRPT) is down 8.7% today. Here is some analysis on what might have caused this price movement.

Analysis: The drop looks tied to a “mixed-quality” earnings reaction: sales growth and higher sales guidance were positive, but underlying profitability metrics were less clean than the headline GAAP profit suggests. Investors may have focused on softer adjusted margin trends and the role of a one-time gain in the quarter’s net income, leading to a sell-the-news move.

Details:

Freshpet reported Q1 net sales of $297.6 million (+13.1% year over year) and raised its full-year 2026 net sales growth outlook to 8%–11% (from 7%–10%).

Adjusted EBITDA increased to $37.9 million, but adjusted EBITDA margin was 12.7% versus 13.5% a year earlier, indicating some margin compression despite revenue growth.

The company’s GAAP net income benefited from a gain tied to selling its non-controlling equity interest, which may have made the quarter’s profit appear less repeatable.

Freshpet kept its full-year adjusted EBITDA guidance unchanged at $205–$215 million and reiterated roughly $150 million of 2026 capital expenditures, which can temper near-term cash flow expectations even with stronger sales.

Sources:

Freshpet (press release), SEC, TradingView

Disclaimer: This price movement analysis was generated with the help of AI. Please double-check the information provided for mistakes.

$FRPT Insider Trading Activity

$FRPT insiders have traded $FRPT stock on the open market 5 times in the past 6 months. Of those trades, 1 have been purchases and 4 have been sales.

Here’s a breakdown of recent trading of $FRPT stock by insiders over the last 6 months:

SCOTT JAMES MORRIS (President) has made 0 purchases and 4 sales selling 68,277 shares for an estimated $3,805,969.
WALTER N. GEORGE purchased 630 shares for an estimated $49,795

To track insider transactions, check out Quiver Quantitative's insider trading dashboard. You can access data on insider stock transactions through the Quiver Quantitative API.

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$FRPT Hedge Fund Activity

We have seen 175 institutional investors add shares of $FRPT stock to their portfolio, and 173 decrease their positions in their most recent quarter.

Here are some of the largest recent moves:

BANK OF MONTREAL /CAN/ added 1,204,450 shares (+334.5%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $73,387,138
FMR LLC removed 944,986 shares (-62.8%) from their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $57,577,996
BALYASNY ASSET MANAGEMENT L.P. added 931,905 shares (+inf%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $56,780,971
ILEX CAPITAL PARTNERS (UK) LLP added 910,154 shares (+18177.6%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $55,455,683
FRANKLIN RESOURCES INC removed 860,550 shares (-52.4%) from their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $52,433,311
BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON CORP removed 775,192 shares (-73.3%) from their portfolio in Q1 2026, for an estimated $45,705,320
QUBE RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGIES LTD removed 750,040 shares (-90.1%) from their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $45,699,937

To track hedge funds' stock portfolios, check out Quiver Quantitative's institutional holdings dashboard. You can access data on hedge funds moves and 13F filings through the Quiver Quantitative API.

$FRPT Price Targets

Multiple analysts have issued price targets for $FRPT recently. We have seen 13 analysts offer price targets for $FRPT in the last 6 months, with a median target of $80.0.

Here are some recent targets:

Kaumil Gajrawala from Jefferies set a target price of $70.0 on 04/22/2026
Matthew Smith from Stifel set a target price of $78.0 on 04/21/2026
Brian Holland from DA Davidson set a target price of $101.0 on 04/13/2026
Bryan Spillane from B of A Securities set a target price of $75.0 on 04/10/2026
Robert Moskow from TD Cowen set a target price of $80.0 on 04/08/2026
Marc Torrente from Wells Fargo set a target price of $78.0 on 04/08/2026
Stephen Powers from Deutsche Bank set a target price of $62.0 on 03/30/2026

This article is not financial advice. See Quiver Quantitative's disclaimers for more information. Note that there may be inaccuracies due to mistakes in ticker-mapping, and other anomalies.