Freshpet, Inc. Reports Third Quarter 2026 Financial Results

Delivers 10% Net Sales Growth
Achieves Gross Margin of 45% and Adjusted Gross Margin of 50%
Raises and Narrows 2026 Outlook

BEDMINSTER, N.J., Nov. 04, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Freshpet, Inc. (“Freshpet” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: FRPT) today reported financial results for its third quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2026.

Third Quarter 2026 Financial Highlights Compared to Prior Year Period

• Net sales of $317.8 million, an increase of 10.0%.
• Gross margin of 44.5%, compared to the prior year period of 39.5%.
• Adjusted Gross Margin of 50.0%, compared to the prior year period of 46.0%.¹
• Net income of $29.7 million, compared to the prior year period net income of $101.7 million, which included a discrete $77.9 million tax benefit as a result of sustained profitability.
• Adjusted EBITDA of $64.5 million, or 20.3% as a percentage of net sales, compared to the prior year period of $54.6 million, or 18.9% as a percentage of net sales.¹
  

“Our third quarter results demonstrate the strength and durability of the Freshpet business model. In a challenging consumer and intense competitive environment, we delivered double-digit net sales growth, expanded margins and achieved our strongest Adjusted Gross Margin in more than seven years, while continuing to grow market share,” commented Billy Cyr, Freshpet’s Chief Executive Officer. “We are executing well against the priorities within our control and strengthening the competitive advantages that differentiate Freshpet, including the quality of our products, our manufacturing scale and expertise, our expanding omnichannel presence and our growing franchise of highly loyal pet parents. We believe these advantages provide a strong foundation to deliver sustainable, profitable growth, capture a meaningful share of the long-term opportunity in fresh pet food and fulfill our mission to help pets live longer, happier and healthier lives with the people who love them.”

Third Quarter 2026

Net sales increased 10.0% to $317.8 million for the third quarter of 2026, compared to $288.8 million in the prior year period. The increase in net sales was primarily driven by volume gains of 10.0%.

Gross profit was $141.3 million, or 44.5% as a percentage of net sales, for the third quarter of 2026, compared to $114.2 million, or 39.5% as a percentage of net sales, in the prior year period. Gross profit as a percentage of net sales increased primarily due to improved leverage on plant expenses, reduced quality costs and lower input costs. For the third quarter of 2026, Adjusted Gross Profit was $158.8 million, or 50.0% as a percentage of net sales, compared to $132.8 million, or 46.0% as a percentage of net sales, in the prior year period.¹

Selling, general and administrative expenses (“SG&A”) were $106.2 million, or 33.4% as a percentage of net sales, for the third quarter of 2026, compared to $89.3 million, or 30.9% as a percentage of net sales, in the prior year period. SG&A as a percentage of net sales increased primarily due to increased logistics costs and variable compensation accrual, partially offset by decreased media spend as a percentage of net sales. Adjusted SG&A for the third quarter of 2026 was $94.2 million, or 29.6% as a percentage of net sales, compared to $78.2 million, or 27.1% as a percentage of net sales, in the prior year period.¹

Net income was $29.7 million for the third quarter of 2026 compared to $101.7 million in the prior year period. The decrease in net income was due to the $77.9 million deferred income tax benefit recognized in the prior year period as a result of the release of the majority of the valuation allowance, compared to income tax expense in the current year period, and increases in SG&A, partially offset by contributions from higher sales.

Adjusted EBITDA was $64.5 million for the third quarter of 2026 compared to $54.6 million in the prior year period. The increase in Adjusted EBITDA was a result of increased Adjusted Gross Profit, partially offset by higher Adjusted SG&A.

First Nine Months of 2026

Net sales increased 12.8% to $921.1 million for the first nine months of 2026, compared to $816.8 million in the prior year period. The increase in net sales was primarily driven by volume gains of 13.3%, partially offset by unfavorable price/mix of 0.5%.

Gross profit was $390.7 million, or 42.4% as a percentage of net sales, for the first nine months of 2026, compared to $326.2 million, or 39.9% as a percentage of net sales, in the prior year period. Gross profit as a percentage of net sales increased primarily due to improved leverage on plant expenses and lower input costs. For the first nine months of 2026, Adjusted Gross Profit was $446.8 million, or 48.5% as a percentage of net sales, compared to $377.1 million, or 46.2% as a percentage of net sales, in the prior year period.¹

SG&A were $329.5 million, or 35.8% as a percentage of net sales, for the first nine months of 2026, compared to $295.0 million, or 36.1% as a percentage of net sales, in the prior year period. SG&A as a percentage of net sales decreased primarily due to a decrease in non-recurring charges compared to 2025, partially offset by increased logistics costs and variable compensation accrual. Adjusted SG&A for the first nine months of 2026 was $291.9 million, or 31.7% as a percentage of net sales, compared to $242.5 million, or 29.7% as a percentage of net sales, in the prior year period.

Net income was $97.7 million for the first nine months of 2026 compared to $105.3 million in the prior year period. The decrease in net income was due to the $77.9 million deferred income tax benefit recognized in the prior year period, compared to income tax expense in the current year period, and increased logistics costs and variable compensation accrual, partially offset by the $66.6 million gain on equity investment, contributions from higher sales, and decreased non-recurring SG&A charges.

Adjusted EBITDA was $154.6 million for the first nine months of 2026 compared to $134.5 million in the prior year period. The increase in Adjusted EBITDA was a result of increased Adjusted Gross Profit, partially offset by higher Adjusted SG&A.

Balance Sheet

As of September 30, 2026, the Company had cash and cash equivalents of $345.9 million with $399.0 million of debt outstanding, net of $3.5 million of unamortized debt issuance costs. Cash and cash equivalents increased $67.9 million compared to $278.0 million as of December 31, 2025, primarily as a result of the $100.0 million of cash proceeds received from the sale of our equity investment and $65.3 million of Free Cash Flow, partially offset by $102.3 million of share repurchases pursuant to the previously announced share repurchase program. For the nine months ended September 30, 2026, cash from operations was $145.5 million, an increase of $40.1 million compared to the prior year period.

Outlook

For full year 2026, the Company is updating its guidance and now expects the following:

• Net sales growth in the range of 12% to 13%, compared to growth of 10% to 12% in the previous guidance;
• Adjusted EBITDA in the range of $215 million to $220 million, compared to $210 million to $220 million in the previous guidance; and
• Positive Free Cash Flow with capital expenditures between $125 to $150 million, compared to ~$150 million in the previous guidance.
  

The Company is reiterating its long-term guidance. For full year 2027, the Company expects:

• Net sales well in excess of the category growth rate, unchanged;
• Adjusted Gross Margin of at least 49%, unchanged; and
• Adjusted EBITDA margin in the range of 20% to 22%, unchanged.
  

The Company does not provide guidance for net income, the U.S. GAAP measure most directly comparable to Adjusted EBITDA, and similarly cannot provide a reconciliation between its forecasted Adjusted EBITDA and net income metrics without unreasonable effort due to the unavailability of reliable estimates for certain components of net income and the respective reconciliations, including the timing of and amount of costs of goods sold and selling, general and administrative expenses. These items are not within the Company's control and may vary greatly between periods and could significantly impact future results.

Conference Call & Earnings Presentation Webcast Information
As previously announced, today, November 4, 2026, the Company will host a conference call beginning at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Time with members of its leadership team. The conference call webcast will be available live over the Internet through the "Investors" section of the Company's website at www.freshpet.com. To participate on the live call, listeners in North America may dial (833) 862-0560 and international listeners may dial (412) 634-6361; the passcode is 10212310.

About Freshpet
Freshpet's mission is to help dogs and cats live longer, happier, healthier lives with the people who love them. Developed by on-staff Veterinary Nutritionists, Veterinarians and Food Scientists, recipes are made from whole ingredients, like fresh meats, vegetables and fruits, and are cooked in small batches at lower temperatures to preserve their natural goodness and made at our Freshpet Kitchens. Freshpet foods and treats are kept refrigerated until they arrive at Freshpet Fridges in local markets or delivered directly to consumers.

Freshpet is available in select grocery, mass, digital, pet specialty, and club retailers across the United States, Canada and Europe, as well as online in the U.S. From the care they take to source their ingredients and make their food, to the moment it reaches your home, Freshpet's commitment to integrity, transparency and social responsibility is a point of pride.

Forward Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release constitute “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and are based on our current expectations and assumptions. These include statements regarding our belief in executing against our priorities, full year 2026 guidance and 2027 financial targets. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements including, but not limited to, those identified in connection with such statements, the implementation of our new technologies in the time frame, at the rate, at the cost, or with anticipated efficiencies and impact on product quality we expect, economic uncertainty, changes in rates of pet acquisition, the launch of competitive products at higher quality or less cost, impact of tariffs, fuel, energy and ingredient pricing, effectiveness of media campaigns, success rate of new chillers, organizational changes, our ability to attract and retain talent and most prominently, the risks discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's latest annual report on Form 10-K and in quarterly reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such forward-looking statements are made only as of the date of this release. Freshpet undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement because of new information, future events or otherwise, except as otherwise required by law. If we do update one or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be made that we will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Freshpet uses the following non-GAAP financial measures in its financial communications. These non-GAAP financial measures should be considered as supplements to the U.S. GAAP reported measures, should not be considered replacements for, or superior to, the U.S. GAAP measures and may not be comparable to similarly named measures used by other companies. Such financial measures are not financial measures prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

• Adjusted Gross Profit
• Adjusted Gross Profit as a percentage of net sales (Adjusted Gross Margin)
• Adjusted SG&A Expenses
• Adjusted SG&A Expenses as a percentage of net sales
• EBITDA
• Adjusted EBITDA
• Adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of net sales (Adjusted EBITDA Margin)
• Free Cash Flow

Adjusted Gross Profit: Freshpet defines Adjusted Gross Profit as gross profit before depreciation expense, non-cash share-based compensation and loss on disposal of manufacturing equipment.

Adjusted SG&A Expenses: Freshpet defines Adjusted SG&A as SG&A expenses before depreciation and amortization expense, non-cash share-based compensation, loss on disposal of equipment, distributor transition costs, legal obligation and international business charges.

EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA: EBITDA represents net income plus depreciation and amortization expense, interest expense net of interest income and income tax expense (benefit), and Adjusted EBITDA represents EBITDA less gain on equity investment, plus non-cash share-based compensation expense, loss on disposal of property, plant and equipment, distributor transition costs, legal obligation, and international business charges.

Free Cash Flow: Freshpet defines Free Cash Flow as net cash flows provided by operating activities less capital expenditures.

Management believes that the non-GAAP financial measures are meaningful to investors because they provide a view of the Company with respect to ongoing operating results. The non-GAAP financial measures are shown as supplemental disclosures in this release because they are widely used by the investment community for analysis and comparative evaluation. They also provide additional metrics to evaluate the Company’s operations and, when considered with both the Company’s GAAP results and the reconciliation to their most directly comparable U.S. GAAP measures, provide a more complete understanding of the Company’s business than could be obtained absent this disclosure. The non-GAAP measures are not and should not be considered an alternative to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP measures or any other figure calculated in accordance with U.S. GAAP, or as an indicator of operating performance. The Company’s calculation of the non-GAAP financial measures may differ from methods used by other companies. Management believes that the non-GAAP measures are important to an understanding of the Company's overall operating results in the periods presented. The non-GAAP financial measures are not recognized in accordance with U.S. GAAP and should not be viewed as an alternative to U.S. GAAP measures of performance.

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¹ Adjusted Gross Margin, Adjusted Gross Profit, Adjusted SG&A, Adjusted EBITDA and Free Cash Flow are non-GAAP financial measures. See "Non-GAAP Measures" for how the Company defines these measures and the financial tables that accompany this release for reconciliations of these measures to the closest comparable GAAP measures.

² Capital expenditures is equivalent to the amount included in "Acquisitions of property, plant and equipment, software and deposits on equipment" on our Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the reported period.