Petco Health and Wellness (NASDAQ:WOOF) Shares Gap Up After Analyst Upgrade

Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:WOOF) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after Jefferies Financial Group upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a buy rating. The stock had previously closed at $2.40, but opened at $2.93. Jefferies Financial Group now has a $5.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $4.05. Petco Health and Wellness shares last traded at $3.2550, with a volume of 8,771,926 shares trading hands.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Petco Health and Wellness in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Evercore decreased their target price on shares of Petco Health and Wellness from $4.00 to $3.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $3.94.

Petco Health and Wellness News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Petco Health and Wellness this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies upgraded Petco from “hold” to “buy” and set a $5.00 price target — a large implied upside that can attract buyers and momentum-seeking funds. (Upgrade noted 3/12/2026)
• Positive Sentiment: Management rolled out a “Reach for the Sky” growth plan targeting flat to +1.5% sales in 2026 and emphasizing expansion of own brands, fresh food and higher-margin services (grooming, training). This signals a shift from cost-cutting to revenue growth, which investors generally reward. Petco outlines ‘Reach for the Sky’ strategy, targets up to 1.5% sales growth in 2026 while expanding own brands and fresh food
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results showed EBITDA/profitability improvement and management said leverage has been reduced — messaging that the operational turnaround is working and supports a higher valuation multiple. Petco Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue roughly matched estimates ($1.52B reported vs. ~$1.51B consensus) but was down year-over-year; FY revenue guidance of about $6.0–6.1B and Q1 revenue roughly $1.5B came in line with expectations — that reduces surprise risk but doesn’t materially re-rate the story on its own. Petco Q4 press release / slide deck
• Negative Sentiment: Petco missed on EPS: reported around -$0.033 vs. expectations near $0.0225 — a clear earnings miss that highlights the company is not yet consistently profitable on a GAAP EPS basis. Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:WOOF) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Alpine Global Management LLC acquired a new stake in Petco Health and Wellness in the 4th quarter valued at $175,000. Zacks Investment Management acquired a new position in Petco Health and Wellness during the fourth quarter worth $94,000. Gotham Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Petco Health and Wellness by 33.9% during the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 319,035 shares of the company’s stock valued at $896,000 after purchasing an additional 80,804 shares in the last quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Petco Health and Wellness in the fourth quarter valued at about $108,000. Finally, Abel Hall LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Petco Health and Wellness in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000.

Petco Health and Wellness Stock Up 35.6%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $2.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $3.10. The firm has a market cap of $1.04 billion, a PE ratio of -325.17 and a beta of 1.75.

Petco Health and Wellness (NASDAQ:WOOF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 11th. The company reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by ($0.03). Petco Health and Wellness had a negative net margin of 0.04% and a positive return on equity of 0.46%. The company had revenue of $1.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.05) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc. will post -0.22 earnings per share for the current year.

About Petco Health and Wellness

Petco Health and Wellness Company, Inc (NASDAQ: WOOF) is a leading U.S. pet specialty retailer focused on delivering products, services and solutions that improve the health and well-being of pets. The company operates a network of retail locations that provide high-quality pet food, supplies and accessories, along with a growing digital platform that supports online ordering, subscription delivery and telehealth consultations for pets.

In addition to its retail offerings, Petco has built a full suite of in-store and virtual services, including grooming, training, dog daycare and veterinary care.