Central Garden & Pet (CENT)
NASDAQ:CENT
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Central Garden Pet
(NASDAQ:CENT)
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Rating:65Neutral
Price Target:
$42.00
▲(15.67% Upside)
Action:ReiteratedDate:02/19/26
The score is driven mainly by improving margins and solid cash generation, partially offset by persistent revenue softness and only moderate balance-sheet flexibility. Technicals are supportive but overbought, while valuation is reasonable without dividend support; guidance reaffirmation and an expanded buyback program add incremental positives despite near-term sales and tariff headwinds.
Positive Factors
Gross margin expansion via productivity
A sustained ~100bp gross margin uplift from productivity and mix improvements increases earnings resilience versus revenue volatility. Structural cost and network changes (facility consolidations, fulfillment modernization) lower unit costs and support durable margin floor, improving long-term cash generation and profitability.
Negative Factors
Persistent top-line softness
Ongoing revenue declines limit scale economies and make margin gains harder to sustain. Without stable organic growth, higher margins can be offset by rising SG&A as a percent of sales, constraining long-term free cash flow expansion and reducing optionality for larger strategic investments.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Gross margin expansion via productivity
A sustained ~100bp gross margin uplift from productivity and mix improvements increases earnings resilience versus revenue volatility. Structural cost and network changes (facility consolidations, fulfillment modernization) lower unit costs and support durable margin floor, improving long-term cash generation and profitability.
Read all positive factors
Central Garden Pet (CENT) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
Market Cap
$2.05B
Dividend YieldN/A
Average Volume (3M)68.31K
Price to Earnings (P/E)73.4
Beta (1Y)0.38
Revenue Growth-2.23%
EPS Growth57.16%
CountryUS
Employees6,000
SectorConsumer Defensive
Sector Strength42
IndustryPackaged Foods
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)0.21
Shares Outstanding9,650,221
10 Day Avg. Volume60,356
30 Day Avg. Volume68,307
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio0.22
Price to Book (P/B)1.32
Price to Sales (P/S)0.67
P/FCF Ratio7.20
Enterprise Value/Market Cap1.53
Enterprise Value/Revenue1.02
Enterprise Value/Gross Profit3.17
Enterprise Value/Ebitda9.03
Forecast
1Y Price Target
$50.50Price Target Upside39.08% Upside
Rating ConsensusModerate Buy
Number of Analyst Covering2
EPS Forecast (FY)2.84
Revenue Forecast (FY)$3.12B
Central Garden Pet Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
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...
How the Company Makes Money
Central Garden & Pet generates revenue primarily through the sale of its pet and garden products across various retail channels, including mass merchants, specialty pet stores, and home improvement retailers. The company employs a multi-faceted re...
Central Garden Pet Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Central Garden Pet Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:Feb 04, 2026
(Q1-2026)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:May 13, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Neutral
The call presents a balanced picture: meaningful operational and margin improvements, strong liquidity, disciplined capital allocation, and management’s reaffirmation of guidance and strategic focus are positive. However, material near-term top-line headwinds driven largely by shipment timing, portfolio optimization and specific channel transitions pressured revenue and segment profitability (notably Garden). Management attributes many negatives to timing and strategic optimization actions and is optimistic about seasonal recovery and growth initiatives—resulting in a measured but cautious outlook.Positive Updates
Revenues and Segment Detail
Total net sales of $617 million, with Pet net sales of $416 million and Garden net sales of $202 million; consumables showing resilience with low single-digit growth in key consumable categories (rawhide, wild bird, animal health).
Negative Updates
Top-line Decline
Total net sales declined 6% year-over-year; Pet down 3% and Garden down 12%, with timing of retailer spring shipments accounting for more than half of the company-wide sales decline.
Read all updates
Q1-2026 Updates
Positive
Negative
Revenues and Segment Detail
Total net sales of $617 million, with Pet net sales of $416 million and Garden net sales of $202 million; consumables showing resilience with low single-digit growth in key consumable categories (rawhide, wild bird, animal health).
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
Central reaffirmed fiscal 2026 non‑GAAP diluted EPS guidance of $2.70 or better while reporting Q1 net sales of $617M (‑6% YoY), gross profit $190M with a 30.8% non‑GAAP gross margin (up 100 bps), non‑GAAP SG&A $166M (26.8% of sales), non‑GAAP operating income $24M (3.9% margin), adjusted EBITDA $50M, non‑GAAP net income $13M, GAAP diluted EPS $0.11 and non‑GAAP diluted EPS $0.21; segment results were Pet sales $416M (‑3%) with $50M operating income (12.1% margin) and Garden sales $202M (‑12%) with a $2M operating loss (‑1.2% margin). Q1 cash used by operations was $70M, inventories rose $20M, cash and short‑term investments were $721M (up $103M), total debt $1.2B with gross leverage 2.9x and net leverage ~1.2x, Q1 CapEx $11M (FY guide $50–60M), non‑GAAP adjustments $7M, net interest expense $8M, effective tax rate 23.3%, share repurchases ~660k shares for $18.5M (≈$28M remaining), and estimated incremental tariff exposure of roughly $20M for the year; the outlook excludes potential impacts from future M&A, divestitures or restructuring.Central Garden Pet Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
66
Positive
Balance Sheet
63
Positive
Cash Flow
62
Positive
| Breakdown | TTM | Sep 2025 | Sep 2024 | Sep 2023 | Sep 2022 | Sep 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | ||||||
| Total Revenue | 3.09B | 3.13B | 3.20B | 3.31B | 3.34B | 3.30B |
| Gross Profit | 992.25M | 972.84M | 943.74M | 946.84M | 992.30M | 970.90M |
| EBITDA | 348.51M | 359.34M | 290.76M | 307.17M | 386.76M | 366.68M |
| Net Income | 155.68M | 162.84M | 107.98M | 125.64M | 152.15M | 151.75M |
Balance Sheet | ||||||
| Total Assets | 3.64B | 3.63B | 3.55B | 3.38B | 3.28B | 3.12B |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 721.15M | 882.49M | 753.55M | 488.73M | 177.44M | 426.42M |
| Total Debt | 1.61B | 1.44B | 1.42B | 1.37B | 1.38B | 1.36B |
| Total Liabilities | 2.07B | 2.04B | 2.00B | 1.93B | 1.95B | 1.89B |
| Stockholders Equity | 1.58B | 1.58B | 1.56B | 1.45B | 1.33B | 1.22B |
Cash Flow | ||||||
| Free Cash Flow | 284.99M | 291.09M | 351.76M | 327.67M | -149.24M | 170.51M |
| Operating Cash Flow | 331.12M | 332.51M | 394.89M | 381.63M | -34.03M | 250.84M |
| Investing Cash Flow | -103.28M | -44.89M | -105.19M | -34.58M | -142.98M | -899.36M |
| Financing Cash Flow | -124.69M | -156.64M | -25.44M | -37.55M | -66.81M | 420.48M |
Central Garden Pet Technical Analysis
Neutral
36.31
Price Trends
36.84
Negative
34.72
Positive
34.89
Positive
Market Momentum
-0.15
Positive
46.23
Neutral
35.42
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For CENT, the sentiment is Neutral. The current price of 36.31 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 36.57, below the 50-day MA of 36.84, and above the 200-day MA of 34.89, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of -0.15 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 46.23 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 35.42 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Neutral sentiment for CENT.
Central Garden Pet Risk Analysis
Central Garden Pet disclosed 33 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Central Garden Pet reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks
Central Garden Pet Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (62)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
66 Neutral | $3.09B | 21.37 | 12.35% | ― | 16.34% | 177.51% | |
65 Neutral | $2.05B | 73.36 | 9.90% | ― | -2.23% | 57.16% | |
64 Neutral | $1.55B | 491.43 | 6.48% | 3.53% | 0.54% | -24.42% | |
63 Neutral | $1.44B | 5.80 | -36.19% | ― | -0.78% | 265.56% | |
62 Neutral | $20.33B | 14.63 | -3.31% | 3.23% | 1.93% | -12.26% | |
62 Neutral | $1.34B | 19.23 | 5.04% | ― | 8.98% | -26.29% |
* Consumer Defensive Sector Average
CENT
Central Garden Pet
36.31
0.37
1.03%
HLF
Herbalife
13.94
6.60
89.92%
JJSF
J & J Snack Foods
81.69
-47.30
-36.67%
SMPL
Simply Good Foods
14.45
-21.78
-60.12%
FRPT
Freshpet
63.04
-19.84
-23.94%
Central Garden Pet Corporate Events
Executive/Board ChangesStock BuybackShareholder Meetings
Central Garden & Pet boosts share repurchase authorization, governance
Positive
Feb 18, 2026
At the Feb. 11, 2026 annual meeting, Central Garden Pet shareholders elected nine directors to serve until the 2027 meeting, ratified Deloitte Touche as the independent auditor for the fiscal year ending Sept. 26, 2026 and approved on a non-bind...
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.