<div id="readability-page-1"><p>Central Garden &amp; Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of &#34;Hold&#34; from the six research firms that are  covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst  has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have issued  a hold recommendation, one  has assigned  a buy recommendation and one  has assigned  a strong buy recommendation to  the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $42.50.</p><div><p><span></span><span>Get <strong>Central Garden &amp; Pet</strong> alerts:</span></p></div><ul><li>3 Small-Cap Stocks on the Way to Bigger and Better Days</li></ul><p>A number of research analysts have recently commented on CENT shares. Zacks Research cut Central Garden &amp; Pet from a &#34;strong-buy&#34; rating to a &#34;hold&#34; rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings  reiterated a &#34;sell (d+)&#34; rating on shares of Central Garden &amp; Pet in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. CJS Securities raised shares of Central Garden &amp; Pet to a &#34;strong-buy&#34; rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group  reaffirmed a &#34;buy&#34; rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Central Garden &amp; Pet in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th.</p><p><b>Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Central Garden &amp; Pet</b></p><h2>Institutional Inflows and Outflows</h2><ul><li>MarketBeat ‘Stock of the Week’: Central Garden &amp; Pet </li></ul><p>Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of  Central Garden &amp; Pet by 3.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,100,839 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,942,000 after buying an additional 32,716 shares during the last quarter.  Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of  Central Garden &amp; 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 during the period.  American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of  Central Garden &amp; Pet by 9.4% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 258,868 shares of the company's stock worth $9,107,000 after purchasing an additional 22,187 shares during the last quarter.  Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of  Central Garden &amp; Pet during the first quarter worth about $7,347,000.  Finally, Hotchkis &amp; Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its position in  Central Garden &amp; Pet by 2.6% in the first quarter. Hotchkis &amp; Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 194,590 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,134,000 after buying an additional 4,840 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own  16.13% of the company's stock. </p><h2>Central Garden &amp; Pet Stock Up 0.5%</h2><p>Shares of CENT opened at $33.76 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.33, a current ratio of 3.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. Central Garden &amp; Pet has a 52-week low of $28.77 and a 52-week high of $43.88. The company has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a PE ratio of 13.24 and a beta of 0.68. The business has a fifty day moving average of $31.82 and a 200 day moving average of $34.70. </p><ul><li>Growth Ahead for Central Garden &amp; Pet</li></ul><p>Central Garden &amp; Pet (NASDAQ:CENT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 24th. The company reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.20) by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $678.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $657.86 million. Central Garden &amp; Pet had a net margin of 5.20% and a return on equity of 11.17%. The business's revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.18) EPS. Central Garden &amp; Pet has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.700- EPS.  On average, sell-side analysts expect that  Central Garden &amp; Pet will post 2.38 EPS for the current year. </p><h2>About Central Garden &amp; Pet</h2> (Get Free Report)<p>Central Garden &amp; Pet Co engages in the production and distribution of branded and private label products for the lawn, garden, and pet supplies markets. It operates through the Pet and Garden segments. The Pet segment focuses on 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, food and supplements, products for equine and livestock, animal and household health and insect control products, live fish, and small animals, as well as outdoor cushions.</p><h2>Featured Stories</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Central Garden &amp; Pet</li><li>What is a Bond Market Holiday? 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Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Central Garden &amp; Pet Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Central Garden &amp; Pet, you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Central Garden &amp; Pet wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Central Garden &amp; Pet currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

CENT

<p>Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT) has received a consensus "Hold" rating from six research firms. The stock has mixed recommendations: one sell, three hold, one buy, and one strong buy. The average 1-year price target is $42.50. Recent analyst actions include Zacks Research downgrading to "hold" and CJS Securities upgrading to "strong-buy." Institutional investors have adjusted their holdings, with Vanguard Group and Millennium Management increasing their stakes. The company reported better-than-expected earnings for the last quarter.</p>

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts