Freshpet (NASDAQ: FRPT) reported Q4 EPS of ($0.08), $0.17 worse than the analyst estimate of $0.09. Revenue for the quarter came in at $84.5 million versus the consensus estimate of $85.53 million.

Fourth Quarter 2020 Financial Highlights Compared to Prior Year Period

• Net sales of $84.5 million, an increase of 28.5%
• Net loss of $3.3 million, compared with prior year net income of $4.6 million
• Adjusted EBITDA of $12.9 million, compared to $13.2 million1

“Thanks to the efforts of our dedicated team members, Freshpet has continued to weather the COVID-19 storm and produced our fourth consecutive year of accelerating growth in 2020. Clearly, our 'Feed the Growth' strategy is working and is proving that the upside potential for Freshpet continues to grow," commented Billy Cyr, Freshpet's Chief Executive Officer. "If we simply continued the rate with which pet parents have joined the Freshpet franchise over the past two years, we would greatly exceed our 2025 goal of having 8 million households feeding Freshpet to their pets. So, we are raising our 2025 household penetration target by 37% to 11 million households and in pursuit of that goal we will get the opportunity to satisfy millions more pets and pet parents. That will also enable us to raise our 2025 net sales target to $1.25 billion. To meet that higher demand, we are accelerating and increasing our capacity expansion plan. We appreciate the support of our stakeholders who are enabling this rapid growth."

"We are pleased to strengthen our liquidity position with our amended credit facility. Our increased liquidity will enable us to both expedite and increase our capacity expansion, supporting our accelerated growth plans," commented Heather Pomerantz, Freshpet's Chief Financial Officer.

GUIDANCE:

Freshpet sees FY2021 revenue of $430 million, versus the consensus of $420.1 million.

For full year 2021, the Company is providing the following guidance:

• To exceed net sales of $430 million, an increase greater than 35.0% from 2020
• To exceed Adjusted EBITDA of $61 million, an increase greater than 30% from 2020
• The Company is investing for growth with increased media as a percentage of net sales to its long-term target level of approximately 12%, coupled with incremental staffing in manufacturing to ensure limited short shipments as it ramps up capacity through the year.

The Company is raising its long-term guidance associated with its "Feed the Growth" 2025 strategic plan to align with its capacity expansion initiatives that are designed to meet consumer demand. The updated 2025 guidance is as follows:

• Increasing household penetration from 8 million households to 11 million households, an increase of 37%
• Increasing net sales from $1 billion to $1.25 billion, an increase of 25%

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Freshpet (FRPT) click here.