# Central Garden & Pet Company (CENT) fundamentals

Data as of 2026-09-08. NASDAQ, United States. Sector: Consumer Defensive / Food & Staples Retailing. Price $41.71, market value $2.6 billion.

## Valuation
- **P/E (trailing): 15.4×** (5-yr avg 16.8×, 3-yr avg 18.0×). Central Garden & Pet Company trades at 15.4× trailing earnings, close to its own five-year average of 16.8×. The Consumer Defensive median in the September 2026 study was 20.1×. Forward P/E is 13.4×, lower than trailing, so analysts expect earnings to grow.
- **PEG: 0.23**. A PEG of 0.23 means the P/E is low relative to expected earnings growth: the market is not paying much for that growth.
- **Price / sales: 0.8×**. Each dollar of revenue is priced at 0.8×, a low multiple typical of thin-margin businesses or out-of-favour stocks.
- **Price / book: 1.5×**. The shares trade at 1.5× book value; book value is a meaningful part of the valuation.
- **EV / EBITDA: 8.8×**. Enterprise value is 8.8× operating earnings before depreciation, the multiple that ignores how the company is financed.
- **Free-cash-flow yield: 13.2%** (5-yr avg 8.3%). Free cash flow equals 13.2% of the market value, above its five-year average of 8.3%, so the shares are cheaper on cash than they have usually been. Above 5% is generally attractive.
- **Earnings yield: 6.5%**. The inverse of the P/E: 6.5% of the price is earned each year.

## Profitability
- **Gross margin: 32.5%**. Central Garden & Pet Company keeps 32.5% of revenue after the direct cost of what it sells.
- **Operating margin: 8.1%**. 8.1% of revenue is left after running the business.
- **Net margin: 5.2%**. 5.2% of each dollar of sales reaches the bottom line.
- **Return on equity: 10.3%**. 10.3% on shareholders' equity is solid.
- **Return on invested capital: 10.4%**. Return on all capital, debt included, is 10.4%.
- **Return on assets: 4.6%**. Each dollar of assets produces 4.6% of profit.

## Growth
- **Revenue growth (1 yr): -2.2%** (3-yr -2.1%/yr, 5-yr 3.0%/yr). Revenue fell 2.2% over the last year, against 3.0% a year compounded over five years: growth is slowing.
- **EPS growth (1 yr): 57.4%** (3-yr 4.4%/yr, 5-yr 7.7%/yr). Earnings per share rose 57.4%, faster than revenue, so margins expanded or the share count shrank.

## Financial health
- **Debt to equity: 0.75**. Debt is 0.75 times equity, moderate leverage.
- **Net debt / EBITDA: 0.9×**. It would take 0.9 years of operating earnings to repay net borrowings, within the comfortable range.
- **Piotroski F-score: 7/9**. 7 of 9 fundamental checks pass: strong and improving financials.

## Dividends
- **Dividend: none**. Central Garden & Pet Company does not currently pay a dividend.

## Price and momentum
- **Total return (1 yr): 11.0%** (YTD 29.7%, 3-mo 3.9%). The shares are up 11.0% over twelve months including dividends.
- **From 52-week high: -11.2%** (45.0% above the low). Trading 11% below its 52-week high.
- **200-day average: above**. The price sits above its 200-day moving average, the usual definition of an uptrend.
- **RSI (14-day): 36**. An RSI of 36 is neutral.
- **Beta (1 yr): 0.36** (volatility 27%). Beta of 0.36 against the S&P 500: the shares move much less than the market.

Live score and charts: https://foliofundamentals.com/analyzer?s=CENT · Page: https://foliofundamentals.com/stocks/cent

Not investment advice.