55,966 Shares in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) Acquired by Aquatic Capital Management LLC

Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 55,966 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,112,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Sprouts Farmers Market as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SFM. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,604,819 shares of the company's stock worth $1,347,554,000 after purchasing an additional 56,652 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 4,464,644 shares of the company's stock worth $567,322,000 after acquiring an additional 24,000 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Sprouts Farmers Market by 10.1% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,843,320 shares of the company's stock valued at $234,231,000 after acquiring an additional 168,605 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Sprouts Farmers Market by 22.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,582,896 shares of the company's stock valued at $201,139,000 after acquiring an additional 294,553 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Sprouts Farmers Market by 13.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,349,694 shares of the company's stock worth $149,020,000 after purchasing an additional 156,175 shares during the period.

Sprouts Farmers Market Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of SFM stock opened at $168.03 on Friday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $149.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $144.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. has a 1 year low of $64.02 and a 1 year high of $178.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.69, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87.

Sprouts Farmers Market (NASDAQ:SFM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.07. Sprouts Farmers Market had a return on equity of 29.86% and a net margin of 4.93%. The business had revenue of $2 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sprouts Farmers Market

In other news, CMO Alisa Gmelich sold 445 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.42, for a total value of $61,151.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 4,436 shares of the company's stock, valued at $609,595.12. This trade represents a 9.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Jack Sinclair sold 2,915 shares of Sprouts Farmers Market stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.54, for a total value of $488,379.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 143,669 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,070,304.26. This represents a 1.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 96,764 shares of company stock worth $13,562,649 over the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on SFM shares. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Sprouts Farmers Market from $119.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Bank of America increased their price target on Sprouts Farmers Market from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Sprouts Farmers Market from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Sprouts Farmers Market from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $163.00 to $190.00 in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $167.00.

About Sprouts Farmers Market

Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the retailing of fresh, natural, and organic food products under the Sprouts brand in the United States. It offers perishable product categories, including fresh produce, meat and meat alternatives, seafood, deli, bakery, floral, and dairy and dairy alternatives; and non-perishable product categories, such as grocery, vitamins and supplements, bulk items, frozen foods, beer and wine, and natural health and body care.

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